


Soulmarked

by theladyofwords



Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Gen, Multi, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-14
Updated: 2018-07-03
Packaged: 2019-03-31 02:39:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 29
Words: 26,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13965570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theladyofwords/pseuds/theladyofwords
Summary: [Mass Effect 2 AU] [Soulmate AU]What's left of Omega's mercenaries discover Archangel's true identity, and after hacking into the Council's database, has learned his soulmark has a match. Her name is Vaike Koit, and she is an Estonian Cultural Specialist who for the last year and a half has been one of Councilor Sparatus' aides. Just what can she bring to the party?[Sporadically Updated]





	1. Cloak and Dagger

**Author's Note:**

> Haven't written anything for the Mass Effect Universe in years, very excited to be back into the fold!

“Commander, we are getting an incoming call from a secure channel.” EDI’s voice alerted Commander Jane Shepard, currently leaning against the wall in Life Support.  
  
“Thank you EDI.” Shepard raised an eyebrow at Thane, whom she had been discussing philosophy with. “Wonder what that’s about.” Thane shrugged his shoulders as he continued to look up at her from his seat,  
  
“We can continue this conversation later, Siha.” She nodded her head in agreement before turning on her heels, and made her way to the communications room.  
  
“Activate the link.” Shepard ordered EDI, crossing her arms and staring down the screen. “My, my, Councilor Sparatus, what a _pleasant_ surprise.” She narrowed her eyes at the Turian, his white facial tattoos glowing slightly in the poor-quality vid, _suspicious – why was he using such a shitty video feed with her?_  
  
“Shepard. I need your… _expertise_.” Sparatus sighed, she had a feeling she was the last person he’d wanted to talk to that day, but fate had chosen otherwise…  
  
“What’s with all the cloak and dagger?” She shifted her weight as she stood there. “Why are you going through unofficial channels?” She asked curiously.  
  
“One of my aides has been kidnapped.” He admitted slowly, “A Human.”  
  
“One of your aides is a Human?” Jane made no attempt to hide her surprise.  
  
“She’s a Cultural Specialist, by the name of Vaike Koit.” He cleared his throat, “She took the position to learn more about Turian Culture, because she has a Turian soulmark.”  
  
“And what do you need a Cultural Specialist for?” Her lips quirked up.  
  
“I work closely with other alien races, the answer should be obvious.” He snorted in reply.  
  
“Really, I couldn’t tell you were trying to be _polite_.”  
  
“I believe the proper phrase is... _you have thick skin_.” It was her turn to snort.  
  
“Why are you sending me and not one of your precious Turian Spectres?”  She turned her head slightly as she gauged his response, trying to figure out why _she_ was picking up _his_ slack.  
  
“She’s been taken to Omega, the Council _technically_ has no jurisdiction there, you however – you’ve made a few stops there, haven’t you? You know the place well enough. You're not exactly aligned with us properly...” _He was skipping over something important here, that was for sure…_  
  
“And?” She tapped her foot lightly and the desperate Turian sighed in defeat,  
  
“You’re aware the Spectre program has full body scans of their candidates? To mark all known tattoos, scars, and soulmarks?” Shepard nodded, remembering the ice cold fucking room she’d been forced to stand in and be scanned. _Thankfully_ the damn thing only took measurements and pictures of the tattoos, scars, and soulmarks. It was mostly used to identify missing or dead spectres when their bodies weren't  _necessarily intact._ “We had a candidate, roughly two years ago who would prove to have the same soulmark as Koit.” He admitted. “He was… _untraceable_ until recently.”  
  
That made Shepard’s brow knit. A Turian who left the Spectre candidacy two years ago, who had been off the grid for almost two years – _Oh_.  
  
“Garrus Vakarian?” Her eyes widened. “Your aide is Garrus’ soulmate?”  
  
“One and the same.” Sparatus leaned back slightly to look both ways. “I believe she was taken specifically to get to your… _resident angel_.”

Jane’s eyes narrowed. “So it would seem that someone knows about Garrus on Omega. And that same someone found out about Koit’s soulmark."  
  
“It would appear that way. I have a separate server, but I do the same screenings the Spectres do for my employees. That way if anyone goes missing…” He started.  
  
“You can identify the bodies or hunt them down yourself.” She bit her lip and shifted where she stood. “Why contact me, why not Garrus?”  
  
“Vakarian is much harder to get to than you are.” Sparatus admitted. “Turians also… aren’t very – hm… clear headed when their soulmates are in danger. Koit will most likely want to stay aboard the Normandy once she’s picked up…”  
  
“She is _not_ spying on me for you.” Shepard pointed her finger at him.  
  
“She won’t, as soon as I know she’s safe – I will be dropping her from my payroll.”  
  
“Then why am I rescuing her for you?” Jane shook her head in disbelief, why did this asshole give her a headache every damn time she talked to him.  
  
“She grew on me. She’s admirable… for a _human_.” His mandibles looked awkward as they splayed apart wider than she’d ever seen on him. _Emotion_. He was showing some sort of emotion for the girl.  
  
“Send me more information, but if I find out she’s sending you cutesy little messages about what I’m _eating_ so fucking help me…” Jane lifted her omnitool, waiting for information to be sent.  
  
“Here you go Shepard, good luck.”

The feed was dropped immediately, but a few seconds later she had a file in her inbox. _Sender: 1.342.30384.SPRTS. File Name: DAWN_. She opened it and a holo met her gaze. Brunette hair, sharp cheekbones, pale skin and blue eyes, _well damn_ , Garrus had hit the jackpot. Boy was Joker going to have a field day. She read over the file before she closed out.  
  
“Shepard, what’s this I heard about a secure call?” Miranda came waltzing in, datapad in hand.  
  
“New recruit coming up, if we get to her in time.” Shepard lied smoothly before slipping past her.


	2. Screwed

“You’re not as clever as you think.” Vaike flipped her greasy hair out of her face, and then resorted to blowing it away from her eyes. “Kidnapping the Turian _councilor’s_ aide?” She heckled the men who were guarding her cozy little cage, eyes narrowed, hands cuffed tightly. She eyed them carefully, taking in the type of armor they wore, as well as the guns that they held in their hands and on their hips. They were significantly less armed than her guards over the past few days. Perhaps her little plan was working out after all. _Good_.  
  
“Shut up Turian fucker.” The Human man spat at her, the Vorcha only cackled at the _insult_.  
  
“Shit, does he think everything’s funny? That is hardly an insult.” Vaike rolled her eyes and carefully edged towards the back of her cage, her hands glowing a bright blue. She flexed her biotics and released herself from the cuffs with ease. The clang of them hitting the bottom of the cage quickly gaining the attention of the two assholes in front of her. She climbed the inside of the cage quickly to escape their ire as they shifted quickly to unlock her cage in come in.  
  
_Could these dumbasses get any stupider?  
  
Okay so, to be fair, she had totally played meek and innocent until they’d lessened her security to the point that she was quite confident that even she could take them down on her own._  
  
She jumped the Vorcha, grabbed his side pistol and quickly shot him in the face. She then kicked out her leg to trip the Human man before shooting him as well.  
  
She quickly slipped out of the cage, already hearing shouts of alert from the gunfire that had gone off.  
  
She rushed to the shadows and started wiggling her way through crates, her thin frame slipping through easily enough. She took a minute in the sea of crates, tucked carefully away between four of the crates to catch her breath and listen to the foot traffic around her. She still didn’t understand what these mercenaries wanted from her, she suspected her soulmate had done something to them – if the way they had ripped her sleeve from her light green shirt and inspected it before taking her was any indication.  
  
_Good for them_. _She was glad they’d kicked these assholes’ asses. Ugh that was a bit redundant._  
  
She almost let out a giggle. Almost. But she was so tired, so hungry… She needed to hold it together until she was out of their grip. She held onto the pistol a little tighter when she heard some slurs, close by to her, rasped out in Russian. She understood it clear enough, if Russia had gifted anything to Estonia it was a love of Vodka, some profanity, and a strong Russian minority in the country. A good third of the curse words in Estonia were Russian in origin if she recalled correctly. She shook her head quickly, shaking the thought away, and began to slip through the crate away from the loud yelling. _These assholes were anything but discrete._

“We need her to draw in Archangel!” Someone yelled very, very loudly. “Find her now!” She shivered but continued to move carefully, quietly…  
  
_Archangel._  
  
They were trying to draw in Archangel. She didn’t know who that was, but it definitely sounded like a codename, it wasn’t a Turian name, and the geometric design on her arm was unquestionably a mix of Human and _Turian_ design. She’d studied soulmarks as a part of her Cultural studies, each race had their own style, but mixed couples had soulmarks with a mix of both types of designs. She knew her Turian soulmate would have the same mark on their arm that hers had, albeit in white to stand out against their hide, whereas hers was dark to stand out against her pale skin.  
  
_Huh._ Perhaps she _shouldn’t_ have used her Biotics after days without sleep or food. She thought as her head grew heavy, as she felt dizzier by the second. She leaned against the metal crate and took a deep breath, then another one, deeper and deeper. She reached out to the heavens as she began to fall. Pistol slipping from her hand, body caught between two crates – a rock and a hard place.  
  
_She hoped this Archangel was as good as they were making them out to be.  
_  
_Because she was screwed._  
  
_Oh so fucking screwed._  
  
As the world went black, she fell into the void.


	3. Two Sides of the Same Coin

“EDI please hold all messages from Garrus that originate from Omega.” Shepard announced in the privacy of her cabin.  
  
“Of course Commander, might I ask why you are withholding his messages, and why you lied to Operative Lawson?” EDI’s calm voice asked over the intercom system.  
  
“Garrus is having enough problems without knowing his soulmate is in trouble. It is my hope, that she’ll be able to talk some sense into him once she’s onboard. The less people know, the better chance we have of him not being aware… Actually, forward me any messages for Garrus that you withhold from him.” Jane explained her reasoning to EDI.  
  
“You believe Officer Vakarian to be unstable?” EDI questioned.  
  
“Not entirely, but between Sparatus' warning and my quick extranet search, I think Garrus’ logic may fly out of the window once he realizes Ms. Koit is in trouble. He has enough on his plate at the moment.” Jane ran her fingers through her red hair, recently sprung from its tight bun.  
  
“You are referring to his plight against Sidonis.” EDI hadn’t asked it as a question, more as a confirmation.  
  
“Yes. I hope you will keep this information from everyone on and off this ship.” She narrowed her eyes at the intercom system, more out of habit, than anything else.  
  
“Yes Commander.”  
  
“Please send up Thane and Samara, I think their subtly would be best suited for this fiasco.” Shepard rose carefully and made her way to her desk.  
  
“Of course Commander.”  
  
  
  
  
  
She toyed with her omnitool, bringing up the right file for the conversation that was to come, waiting patiently for the ship’s sole Drell and Asari to make their way up through the elevator. She was unsurprised to see them arrive together, knowing the growing friendship and respect between the two.  
  
“I’d offer you a seat…” She nodded towards her bed. “But I don’t want to make you uncomfortable." She took a deep breath, "What I say doesn’t leave this room.” Jane stepped forward, stopping in front of the two aliens. “A ragtag group of mercenaries on Omega decided to kidnap Councilor Sparatus’ aide.” Shepard started, bringing up the image of the brunette woman. “Her name is Vaike Koit.”  
  
“It is surprising to learn the Turian councilor even had a Human aide.” Samara spoke first.  
  
“Perhaps that is why she was chosen.” Thane thought aloud, “Because it would be so unsuspected. She should have been under the radar, so why was she taken?” His arms were tucked behind his back like he often did, while Samara’s were in a similar gesture but in front of her person.  
  
“Koit is a Cultural Specialist, Sparatus used her talents to keep from treading on too many toes when it came to cultural differences or disputes… Not that he ever gave me that kindness.” She snorted and then grew serious. “Like Spectres, Councilor aides must submit to full body scans-“  
  
“Much like the Justicars do on Thessia.” Samara mentioned, Thane shook his head quietly but gave no verbal response. Assassins wouldn’t have the same requirements; their entire purpose was to blend in or disappear.  
  
“Koit’s soulmate pissed off a lot of mercenaries on Omega, and somehow, one of them got their sticky fingers on the _right_ body scans.” Shepard finished with a sigh, pulling up the attached picture of Koit’s soulmark. The top half was a very geometric Turian design, that then blended nicely into the bottom half – a more fluid human design. The black lines stood out against her pale skin quite vividly. She watched Thane’s eyes widen.  
  
“She’s Vakarian’s soulmate?” He blew out a short whistle. “This is… troubling.” Samara seemed to stand up straighter at the reveal.  
  
“Which is exactly why Garrus won’t know until she’s safe and onboard.” Jane made sure her tone was firm and clear.  
  
“Turians are somewhat territorial creatures.” The Justicar nodded, understanding the logic.  
  
“Soulmates are sacred.” Thane’s hands found themselves clasped in front of him. “These men are foolish creatures and will be taken care of.”  
  
“Agreed. Garrus is our ally, and this girl is an innocent.” The Asari offered, “They will not succeed.”  
  
“Glad we’re all on the same page. Samara, we will go after your target once Ms. Koit is safely tucked away in the medbay.” She offered.  
  
“I understand, Shepard. Just as long as my mission is seen through, I can wait a day more. The life of an innocent is an important thing.” Jane offered the Asari a weak smile, knowing damn well the woman had been chasing the target for _years_.  
  
“Thank you. EDI how far are we from Omega?” She turned to the intercom interface.  
  
“We are currently two hours from our current destination.” EDI’s voice filled the room.  
  
“Plenty of time for a nice meal, some meditating, and gearing up.” Jane Shepard offered another small smile towards the two aliens in front of her.  



	4. Safety

Vaike opened her eyes but she couldn’t move. She shivered at the bottom of her cage. _She hadn’t made it after all_. She heard loud noises from the distance but couldn’t make anything out of it. Everything was a blur, she couldn’t make out any images in front of her other than the cold metal she was laying on. Her whole body ached, but nothing worse than her wrists where she once again wore cuffs. The cuffs were tighter than they had been. She wiggled her fingers trying to rid herself of the awful tingly numbness that they held.  
  
The noise stopped she noted, at some point she had closed her eyes again. She heard the creaking of her cage open, soft voices so unlike the men who had been guarding her earlier. Someone lifted her carefully – no two someones – and suddenly there was water being offered to her.  
  
She sputtered clumsily until her brain started working again, being careful to take a few slow slips before she pulled away. She heard the cuffs clang against the metal of the cage before she realized she was uncuffed.  
  
“Vaike Koit?” She heard her name being spoken with a feminine voice and nodded slightly. “You’re in safe hands, I promise.”  
  
“W-Who…” Her voice was hoarse, barely non-existent.  
  
“Shh, I’m Jane Shepard.” She felt herself being steadied between two bodies. “This is Thane Krios and Samara, Sparatus told us you were captured.” The woman tried explaining.  
  
Jane Shepard. Female Human name. She cataloged mentally. Thane Krios. More difficult to place. Thane was a Human name as well as alien, but it was also a Male's name, no doubt about it. Samara. Also difficult to place, was usually a feminine name. She eyed the figure on her left as best she could.  _A_ _blue blob_. Asari? And then looked at her right. _A g_ _reen blob_. Surprising. He was no doubt a Drell. She looked straight forward at the black and orange blob before nodding her head.  
  
“Thank you.” It was a mere whisper, but suddenly her world was going dark again. She felt herself slumping and heard the Human mutter out a curse. Then suddenly, everything and everyone was gone.

  
  
  
She woke again, this time in a bright room - almost too bright, she let out a soft hiss. She heard footsteps quickly make their way to her side,  
  
“Stay down dear, you’re awfully exhausted and dehydrated. Had to feed you with a tube, I’m sure it wasn’t the best experience, but you needed something in your system.” A calm reassuring voice met her ears. “Had to bandage up your wrists as well, when you’re feeling up to it I will have to spoon feed you your first meal as the medigel finishes patching you up.” Vaike nodded numbly as her eyes focused on the image of an older Human woman. “Here let me slowly move you up.” She watched as the other woman pressed a button on the cot, making her slowly rest into a sitting position.  
  
“Oh… thank you.” Her voice was clearer than it had been earlier but was still hoarse.  
  
“Oh, forgive me dear – I’m Dr. Karin Chakwas.” The doctor offered up and Vaike smiled weakly.  
  
“I’m Vaike Koit.” She offered, despite knowing full well the doctor already knew her name.  
  
“Let me get you some water, sit tight.” Vaike took the opportunity to look down at the blanket resting over her legs and the hospital gown that covered the rest of her body. It was short sleeved and did nothing to cover up her soulmark. She frowned slightly. Her soulmate hadn’t come for her, had he? It had been a Human, a Drell, and an Asari. “Commander Shepard has asked to be alerted when you awoke, she wanted to have a conversation with you.” Karin Chakwas helped her with her water carefully.  
  
“Oh?” Vaike managed to ask in between a few sips, before the water was set aside.  
  
“EDI please alert the Commander that our guest is awake.”  
  
“Of course, Doctor.” _Huh that’s a nice voice…_  
  



	5. Borrowed Threads

Right now, Vaike was thankful that she and Commander Shepard were of comparable measurements. She was sitting sideways on her cot, dressed in a pair of N7 leggings, and in a tight black tank top with a built-in sports bra that was only short if she held her arms all the way above her head. She made a mental note of restricting that action, otherwise the tattoo on her side would become public domain. Surprisingly enough, she was wearing the spare pair of boots Karin herself kept in the med bay just in case someone’s bodily fluids got all over her main pair. Vaike had worked in a preschool for a couple of summers and knew how smart the spare pair of boots really was. Hell, she used to have whole spare outfit tucked away in the closet. What she wasn’t quite sure of, was where her underwear had come from, but she wasn’t about to ask.  
  
“So, feeling better now that you’re all showered and dressed?” Jane was perched on one of Dr. Chakwas’ counters, and it was pretty obvious she wasn’t entirely welcomed there. Karin’s eyes were narrowed on her perch and she mumbled something that Vaike couldn’t quite make out.  
  
“Yes, I’ll feel much better after I visit the sauna on the Citadel though.” She admitted. “Nothing gets you cleaner than sweating all the impurities from your body.” She relaxed where she sat. “Besides, ship water gets cold quick and is constantly being recycled.  
  
“Never been to a sauna myself, but you’re right about ship water.” The redhead sighed heavily. “My private shower isn’t much better.”  
  
“The perk is mainly just the privacy.” Vaike pointed out as she shifted on her cot.  
  
“So – you’re okay with lying to Garrus for me?” Shepard tested again, she’d explain her reasoning to the brunette, telling her all Garrus had gone through the past few months and how she was worried for him. Hell, the woman had told her everything she could think of about her soulmate to the point Vaike was now slightly uncomfortable about it. There were some things that you should be told by your bondmate themselves, and not secondhand.    
  
“Look, you know him better than I do at this point.” Vaike told Jane. “I will respect your judgement, but sooner or later he’ll figure something doesn’t fit. And when that time comes, I get to blame it on you.” She turned her tone into a teasing one.  
  
“That’s fair.” The redhead offered a weak smile.  
  
“Perhaps you’ll be able to help Garrus more than any of us can.” Karin spoke up, and both younger women turned to look at her.  
  
“He can be a bit stubborn.” Jane agreed and Karin snorted.  
  
“If you call walking out of the med bay five hours after his emergency surgery for that missile to the face, you are under selling it.” Vaike’s eyes widened.  
  
“He did what now?” Vaike turned to Shepard for some clarification.  
  
“We almost lost him on Omega. Those mercenaries were trying anything to take him out. You got a little taste of it yourself.” She explained. “They got him with a missile, you’ll see the scars, they’re on the left side of his face.”  
  
“The mercenaries that were left barely had supplies or resources, they only caught me because I was out jogging without any company or weapons on my person.” Vaike admitted. “I almost escaped on my own, but exhaustion got me. I shouldn’t have used my biotics in the condition I was in.”  
  
“Wait, you’re a biotic? It’s not in your file.” Shepard’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.  
  
“I’m not powerful, I’ve only got a small amount. Once I use what I’ve got, I’ve nothing left for the next day or two.” Vaike rubbed the back of her neck. “It’s enough to use in a pinch, but nothing otherwise. I left it off my resume because its always seen as a disappointment.”  
  
“Ah, I think I understand – it’s your last resort because it lacks the usual strong points?” Vaike nodded along with Shepard’s description.  
  
“It’s always best to keep a little something in your back pocket, just in case, you know?”  
  
“I completely understand.” Jane offered her a crooked grin.  
  
“Now if you two don’t mind…” Chakwas began and Shepard quickly slipped down from the counter.  
  
“We’ll be out of your hair in a jiffy, just going to call a crew meeting in the mess hall.” Vaike bit her lip to keep from giggling as Shepard offered an exaggerated salute to the doctor. “EDI - call the crew, Vaike – come on, we can stand and chat some more until everyone comes bumbling in.”  
  
“That’s fair, I’m sure you have more questions.” Vaike slipped down carefully from the cot and met Shepard at the door.  
  
“First things first – how in the _hell_ do you end up on Sparatus’ good side?” Vaike snorted as she followed her out of the room.  
  
“Well first you need to be professional as shit in the office, but also know the appropriate jokes for the water cooler…” She teased to the redhead.


	6. Eyes

“Ah great, so we’re all here.” Jane looked around to everyone standing or sitting around the mess hall. “So as you all know, we picked up another recruit on Omega.” Vaike was sure she heard the man in the baseball hat cough out a muttered ‘stray’ but ignored it to put on a professional face, her arms still crossed as she stood side by side with Shepard.  
  
“Yes, speaking of, I was made aware that this is a recruit of your choosing and not the Illusive Man’s.” Miranda spoke from her seat, datapad in hand. Vaike offered her a glance but said nothing, but let Shepard set the tone.  
  
“No, she’s a recruit whose portfolio was sent by the Council.” Shepard admitted and Vaike bit the inside of cheek lightly to keep from laughing, _so this was the way they’d be doing this_.  
  
“You brought a Council lackey aboard this ship?” Miranda’s eyebrows both rose.  
  
“Vaike, do you mind introducing yourself? Explaining why you’re here?” Shepard turned to her and she fought off a grimace, _so she’d only come up with the footnote of her story and was leaving her with the rest._  
  
“Hello, my name is Vaike Koit.” Her arms stayed cross, hiding most of her soulmark. “I’m a Cultural Studies specialist.” She shifted her weight from one foot to another as she thought carefully about what she wanted to say. “Councilor Sparatus sent me to evaluate Shepard’s crew and current undertakings. The council isn’t exactly thrilled that a Spectre, _the first Human Spectre_ , has teamed up with a Human supremacy group.”    
  
“Cerberus _is not_ a Human supremacy group.” The other brunette in the room narrowed her eyes at Vaike from her spot. “Shepard, the Council has no sway in the Terminus, there is no reason to keep her aboard.”  
  
“We need allies, Miranda.” Shepard pointed out. “And while my Spectre status is up in the air, having a voice of a former aide may help.” She made a show of sighing deeply, which almost made Vaike smirk.  
  
“The Council has labeled Ceberus as a Human Supremacy group, based on our information of the group, as well as historical facts and situations with similar groups.” Vaike explained, her arms slipping from their place across her chest as she began to talk with her hands a little. “I am not here to start any arguments with any of you, I am simply here to make sure Shepard’s explanations are factual, and that she is not marring the title of Spectre.”  
  
“And they didn’t send a Spectre because?” Miranda couldn’t seem to let go of her presence, she would be the one to watch in this group.  
  
“Like you said, miss, the Council has no authority in the Terminus.” Vaike offered a sly grin. “It’s the reason I’m here unofficially, and just evaluating.” She watched as Miranda’s eyes fell to her arm and studied the bondmark that rested there. “I’m here to maintain Shepard’s reputation. I am however, not here to spy on your personal lives, I am here to assist Commander Shepard where she needs it, and when your “mission” is complete, file my official record on the whole matter.” She used the air-quotes that Sparatus was so fond of and heard Jane snort loudly beside her.  
  
“You sure you didn’t teach him that?” She offered the Estonian a wry grin.  
  
“Oh no, he was already using it when I came to the office.” Vaike turned her body to face Shepard, letting her bondmark face the group. “I did however get him addicted to the Dextro equivalent of Blood Sausage.”  
  
“I’m surprised that they didn’t have that already…” Shepard’s nose wrinkled and she laughed in response.  
  
“My mother runs a Dextro friendly restaurant in the port of Tallinn, back on Earth. She’s been developing Dextro equivalent recipes for Estonian favorites since I was a little girl. Said if two of her children were bondmates to Dextro aliens, then she best damn better learn how to cook for them. Turians have a similar food, but it’s more of a meat and blood jam for breads, and not a sausage.” She prattled, as she tended to do when nervous.  
  
“Where have I seen that bondmark before.” She thought she heard the pilot who had scoffed earlier mumble to himself but ignored him.  
  
“Did ya say Tallinn?” The accent caught her attention and she turned her head to note an older gentleman in armor, a massive scar on his face. “Spent a summer there, ages ago. Good food, great views, even better women.”  
  
“I get that a lot, actually.” Vaike offered a smirk to the well-worn man. “That accent, English? Sounds sort of Cockney-ish?” She tried to pin-point the accent, causing the man to bark a loud laugh.  
  
“You’re good, girl.” He studied her a bit with his one good eye, she wondered if he could see anything at all out of the other.  
  
“Studying cultures tends to blend into studying accents and dialects as well. I originally specialized in Northern European cultures, but more specifically Nordic.” She admitted, “I’m fluent in four Human languages, but I can read, write, and understand oral Palaven Common as well.”  
  
“So where are your things and why are you wearing Shepard’s hand-me-downs?” A short, lithe woman appeared out of nowhere a good ten feet from where Vaike and Shepard stood. Vaike jumped slightly, causing the woman to grin.  
  
“I was only meaning to be on Omega for a brief time… But when I got into it with some mercenaries…” Vaike rubbed her bondmark gently, hoping it wasn’t a tell. “When Sparatus called Shepard in to get me out of the sticky situation, he decided this position would be more valuable for everyone. Two birds one stone, and all that.”  
  
“Hm, nice bondmark – Turian/Human, yes?” Vaike’s eyes widen as the woman came closer, grabbed her arm lightly, and twisted it back and forth carefully.  
  
“Uh, yes…” She looked out of the corner of her eye, where she swore she saw the pilot throwing his hat at the one Turian in the room. _Garrus Vakarian._  
  
Deep breaths.  
  



	7. Lack of Privacy

The meeting thankfully ended shortly after that and Vaike took an empty spot at the table as the mess was clearing out. She fiddled with her omnitool, working on the blocks put in place by the mercenaries earlier so she could check in with her family. She felt eyes on her. She knew whom they belonged to. She was also pretty sure Shepard was just around the corner eavesdropping with the help of a none-to-enthused Drell by her side.  
  
She looked up when he cleared his throat, trying to keep her nerves in check so Shepard’s story planned out. She was not supposed to know he was her bondmate just yet. She was not supposed to be anxious. _Deep breaths_.  
  
“Oh hello.” She offered a friendly smile before ducking her head back down, fiddling with orange keys.  
  
“You look like you need some help.” He cleared his throat again, and she caught the end of a soft rumble – _good, he was nervous_.  
  
“Just trying to get these blocks off.” She peered up again, motioning towards her omnitool. “Thankfully it's a Russian style job, so I should have things back to normal in no-time. I’m just hoping it didn’t ruin my music files.”  
  
“Ah, still – Let me try?” There was an awkward air between them, so Vaike offered her arm, knowing full damn well it was the same arm that held her bondmark.  
  
“I haven’t really messed with programming and coding for the past three years. I haven’t exactly stayed up to date.” She listened to his hums and thrums, all pouring from his throat – some subvocals. He was nervous, and while he was making progress on the blocks, he kept making eye contact with her soulmark.  
  
“It’s a newer coding system, got popular a few months ago.” He managed out, after a few moments of silence. “Uh – so you’re name is Becky Koit?”  
  
“Veh-kay, you were pretty close. Humans have the most issues with my name.” She admitted, catching his blue eyes for a second.  
  
“Really?” He seemed surprised.  
  
“It’s an old Estonian name, not too many of us running around the galaxy. Two million if you’re feeling generous. We’re one of the smaller Human nations.” She informed him. “And your name?”  
  
“Garrus Vakarian.” A shiver rain down her spine, he really did have a nice voice… “What’s your name mean?”  
  
“Vaike means tranquil or peaceful, I’m not very tranquil though. My last name, Koit, means dawn.” She watched the block crash on her omnitool’s screen and offered him a bright smile. “Oh thank you! That would have taken me _hours_.”  
  
“It’s nothing… Uh… Do you mind if we talk somewhere private?” Vaike offered a small frown and looked around the empty mess hall.  
  
“We’re alone right now?” She offered, still playing innocent on the whole manner.  
  
“Not really.” Vaike nearly fell over as the cloaked woman spoke from behind her.  
  
“Kurat!” She slammed her hand on the table, eyes wide as she turned quickly trying to grab the invisible woman, only for her to appear twenty feet away, waving at her, and then cloaking again. “That was… _intense_.” Vaike rubbed her forehead.  
  
“Uh, main battery?” He motioned behind him.  
  
“Sure.” She took a deep breath as she stood up, following his large frame as he showed her the way. Well, she didn’t have any complaints with his appearance, that was nice. The scars Shepard had described had seemed much worse than what she could see. She took a deep breath, shut off her train of thoughts, and followed him through the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Kurat" is used in Estonian much like "damn" is in English, however it translates to "devil".


	8. Nerves

She knew what nervous Turians looked like. She had spent the past year and half – well, except that one week she took off for _Laulupidu_ and _Üldtantsupidu_ * - surrounded by Turians. Turians who often got nervous before speaking to their boss, Councilor Sparatus, when they had to bring him unwelcomed news. She was always thankful she was never the one who had to deliver intel, rather she helped him plan greetings or meeting places for certain ambassadors, shit like that – it easy-peasy compared to the rest of the lots’ jobs.

She watched him shift around, slightly amused by it, but more nervous herself than anything else. She tried to keep her face neutral, not to give anything off that would jeopardize Shepard’s plan. Shepard knew him better than she did at this point, and she wanted Garrus to have a nice sturdy foundation as soon as possible, worried that his quest for revenge would lead him to awful places.

“Is everything alright Garrus?” He stilled at her words, mandibles flexing almost as if he’d forgotten she was standing so close to him – it was a small room after all.  
  
“How well do you know Turians?” Garrus asked, though she could almost feel his nervous subvocals from their proximity.  
  
“Enough to know your nervous, and enough to understand subvocals to a degree?” She admitted offering him a smile. “What’s wrong?”  
  
“Nothing’s wrong!” It came out of his mouth quickly, and he shut his mouth just as quickly.  
  
“I mean it’s not every day I drive a man speechless and make him shake in my presence.” She teased before straightening up. “Look, I know we just met – but I promise I’m not here to spy or ruffle any feathers, I’m just looking out for Shepard and-“  
  
“I’m your soulbond.” He interrupted her and Vaike froze mid-sentence.  
  
“Oh – _Oh!_ ” Vaike offered him a wide smile, “You should have opened with that! I thought you were going to test me on my loyalty for Shepard versus’ Sparatus!”  
  
“You’re not upset…” Garrus blinked at her and she blinked back at him.  
  
“Why would I be upset? I’ve known I was bonded to a Turian as long as I’ve been capable of complex thoughts.” She nudged his arm lightly. “Oh, can I see it? I know it’s white on you so it shows up better…”  
  
“Oh, right. Sorry…” He looked a bit sheepish but began removing his armor.  
  
“You should really replace that armor by the way, it looks terrible.” She reprimanded softly, frowning at the gaping hole. “That can’t be completely structurally sound…”  
  
“It is, I ran tests –“ He cut in as he continued removing the upper half of his armor, revealing a black bodysuit underneath.  
  
“What are you trying to do, intimidate your enemies with your burnt armor?” She tilted her head.  
  
“I figured between the armor and the scars, they’d know I was a tough son of a bitch.” Garrus admitted to her, lowering pieces of metal to the floor carefully.  
  
“The scars do enough of that, the armor is overkill – we can pick you up a new set of armor on the Citadel while we’re there.” She lifted her eyes from where his hands were working the armor off bit by bit, and up to his face.  
  
“We? You’re jumping into this quickly.” Garrus subvocals admitted his happiness to her though.  
  
“I think Shepard hinted at this when she gave me a little briefing of the crew. She mentioned that you had a rough year or two and could use someone to talk to – I thought she was just talking about my proficiency in Palaven Common, I can understand it in spoken form and read and write it, but I couldn’t bring myself to have the surgery – Estonia is known as the Singing Nation on Earth for good reason, we love singing and our singing festivals.” She admitted sheepishly, then made a show of freezing, “Well fuck me.”  
  
“I – excuse me?” She gaped up at him and covered her mouth.  
  
“Oh shit sorry – I just remembered Sparatus mentioning he knew who my soulmate was but that he was off-the-grid – that son of a bitch must have known you were onboard.” She admitted, blushing slightly at his wide eyed expression.  
  
“Politicians tend to be slimy bastards.” He tried to tease, brushing off her earlier words as he worked his undersuit off, pushing it down to his thin waist.  
  
“Hear hear – well I definitely can’t complain about my end of the soulbond.” She offered him a wink before carefully taking his forearm, purposely avoiding his reaction. She twisted his arm slightly and looked upon the white soulmark that matched her own black one. “I almost can’t believe I’m seeing your soulmark. It’s different, with the color and all, but it’s the same design, the same proportions. You know, each race has their own kind of design and have their own opinions of what the soulmark actually means with its design.”  
  
“Turians believe the marks guide to a prosperous union, a mate who can never be disloyal.” Garrus nodded at her words, watching her fingers trace the lines.  
  
“Yes. Humans believe that people with matching designs are two halves of the same soul.” She told him softly. “Humans tend to be more public about their romantic thoughts and feelings, I know Turians are a bit more private.”  
  
“We have our own ways of showing it.” He admitted, and she could feel the hum of his subvocals through her fingertips, still splayed on his arm. She looked up at him and offered a small smile,  
  
“I look forward to learning first-hand.”  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Laulupidu and Üldtantsupidu translate into The Estonian Song Festival and The Estonian Dance Festival, respectively. They are held every five years together and are on the UNESCO list of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity events/elements. 
> 
> I did the math, and the year before Shepard was revived would be a Festival year.
> 
> Here's a little more on both events:  
> Info Video on the Dance Festival - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDXZC5cqyNs&t=169s  
> Song Festival (one of the most popular traditional songs) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHOIN_vsGSA
> 
> Feel free to do some more research on these events because they are absolutely gorgeous!  
> Next year is also a festival year!


	9. Ants

“Ants!” Vaike grinned at his face, even as he rubbed his eyes and groaned at her.  
  
“What are you doing calling me at – oh it’s eleven.” Vaike snorted and leaned back against a crate in the hangar, just around the corner from where the Hammerhead sat.  
  
“Drink too much last night, Ants?” She teased, the human on the projected screen slowly rising from bed and mumbling curses under his breath.  
  
“Ja, I think so.” She rolled her eyes as she watched him, waiting _somewhat patiently_ as he woke up. “So what’s up little sister? You look a bit like shit, ya know? And you didn’t call in to family lunch on Monday.” Blue eyes narrowed at her.  
  
“I got reassigned.” She sighed, running her hand through her brunette hair and watching him do the same to his.  
  
“Like – promotion or demotion? What sort of reassignment?” Vaike wiggled her feet, still clad in borrowed boots.  
  
“Unofficially I’m keeping an eye on Commander Shepard.” She admitted, “So I’m on a ship and not on the Citadel anymore.”  
  
“Wait… Commander Shepard, the dead Spectre?” She caught a glimpse of Ant’s soulmark snaking up the back of his neck and sighed at the familiar sight. Ants had stood up for her so many times when someone tried to tease her for her soulmark. Their mother had been proud of their soulmarks and what they meant, her mother had learned all about Dextro cuisine because of their marks. The hexagonal marks on Ants’ neck meant a Quarian soulmate, and Ants had found the young man just two years ago. Thank the gods that Estonia was a hotbed for Quarians on their pilgrimages.  
  
“Yes, she’s been patched up quite nicely.” She didn’t completely believe the story she’d been told, but knew enough that Garrus and Shepard wouldn’t both lie to her on the matter. “There’s – _more_.” She hesitated only momentarily, knowing her family would want to meet Garrus immediately, but they were on some sort of mission – and well, she didn’t want to overwhelm him so soon – but she also couldn’t lie to her family, _well at least not all of them._.  
  
“More?” Her brother raised his eyebrow at her and she gave a crooked smile.  
  
“I found my soulmate.” Ant’s own smile met her own, nearly mirrored images of each other, but her lips were fuller.  
  
“Congratulations Vaike! When do we get to meet them?” He bounced where he sat, excitement radiating off him and warming her heart.  
  
“Hopefully soon, he’s dealing with some personal stuff and a recent injury…” Her cheeks almost hurt from how wide she was beaming.  
  
“Details, details, tell me more!”  
  
“He’s from Palaven so he has blue markings, he’s about mid-tier with his marking designs, he’s ex c-sec…” Vaike began to tell him about Garrus, how tall he was, the color of his plates and the color of his eyes – and how beautiful his voice was.  
  
“So he’s definitely a looker then?” She stuck her tongue out at her brother before sighing.  
  
“Okay, so he’s pretty handsome…”  
  
“Mmhmm, and the injury you mentioned?” She tapped her fingers on her knee as she tried to find the words.  
  
“Facial injury mostly, he’s got scars on one side of his face, a little on his neck…” She brought her hand up to show him visually where the scars lay.  
  
“Oh damn, but scars are sexy, ja?” He waggled his eyebrows, causing her to scoff.  
  
“You should be thankful I told you first.” Her nose was scrunched at him, as he continued wagging his eyebrows suggestively.  
  
“You told me first because I’m number one – your favorite so of course, number two – I can talk to you about Dextro-Levo sex complications, and number three – I can help with mom.” She threw her head back with a groan.  
  
“I didn’t even think about the second thing.” She bumped her head lightly against the crate.  
  
“Water based lube helps with easing some of the reactions – with a Turian you’re probably going to need some skin soothing lotions too…” Her brother began counting under his breath with his fingers as he went down his recommendations, she hid behind her hand, face practically glowing red. “You should definitely start taking allergy medication, just as a precaution. _Oh I’m sorry am I embarrassing you_?” His tone shifted, his neutral expression turning into one of enjoyment.  
  
“We’ve only just met, Ants. Also I _know_ how to have safe Dextro/Levo sex – Mom gave me this whole talk before I left home.” She rubbed her cheek in embarrassment.    
  
“You obviously needed the refresher.” Ants winked at her before turning away from her. “Oh, Rael just got in, went to a tech conference in Helsinki and stayed overnight. I’ll share your news with him and then we can decide how to tell mom.”  
  
“She’s going to want to have a party and meet him – and I just don’t know if that’s possible at the moment.” She sighed. “But yeah, talk to Rael, he’s the smartest of the lot and understands the Alien perspective of our overbearing Human family.”  
  
“Is that all I am to you, an Alien?” A Quarian popped into frame and Vaike’s expression shifted quickly.  
  
“No! You’re my favorite of the lot, just dealing with some stuff right now. We’ll catch up later, yeah?” She smiled brightly at the Quarian, his dark blue hood covering his helmet.  
  
“Sounds good to me. _Keelah_ Ants – I can smell the alcohol on you through my filters…” The feed cut and Vaike sighed, once again laying her head against the crate behind her.  
  
Gods, how was Garrus going to survive her crazy family?  
  
_Kurat võtku!_ *  
  
_How was Garrus going to survive her mom?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ants is a very traditional Estonian name, it's an "old man" name even in our time. But because Vaike has a traditional name as well, I wanted to give her siblings the same. Ants is roughly a John equivalent, but there are more popular ones these days.
> 
> Kurat võtku! - You might recognize Kurat from earlier, but in this phrase it roughly corresponds to "Damn it" but translates into "May the Devil take this!"
> 
> Also "ja" does mean yes in Estonian, about 10% of the language has German roots due to the upper class of Estonia being German in origin after they were ruled by the Germans beginning in the 13th century. Denmark, Sweden, and Russia would also rule over Estonia at different periods of time, Russia twice, although technically the Soviet Union by international law was illegally occupying Estonia (and the other Baltic States). Estonian however, is a Finnic-Urgic language and is most related to Finnish.


	10. Coffee Break

Vaike poured the coffee into the thermos carefully, not wanting to burn herself. She applied EDI’s directions, one creamer, three sugars, and stirred it with a plastic straw she found. On went the cap, away went the used straw, and off Vaike went towards the cockpit.  
  
Her borrowed boots clunked a little louder than she would have liked with every step towards the elevator. She looked forward to wearing her own clothes again, though she might have to splurge and buy a few pieces that were more ship-savvy. She briefly wondered if Shepard would let her bring some of her more – ah traditional knickknacks, but also quickly shoved away the idea of being able to bring her snake infused vodka onboard. That had been hard enough to explain to her old co-workers…  
  
She stepped off the elevator and crossed the navigation area of the ship, looking around a little and offering a small smile to those who crossed her own path. She offered a wave to Kelly who eagerly waved to her and then lifted the thermos as she headed forward still.  
  
“Someone order coffee? One cream three sugars?” She asked and watched the pilot spin around in his chair.  
  
“Yes.” He groaned reaching out with both hands. Vaike scrunched her nose as she passed it to him, only for him to cradle the thermos like a small child or a precious gem. “What’s with your face?” He blew into the thermos before taking a small sip and groaning again.  
  
“I don’t like coffee.” She admitted, slipping into the unoccupied co-pilot’s chair.  
  
“Well you’re missing out.” He snorted, spinning his chair back around – after closing the thermos again. “I practically live off this shit.”  
  
“I prefer tea.” She looked out at the vast emptiness in front of her. Stars out in the distance as they were propelled forward at what almost seemed like a snail’s pace – but she knew they were going much faster than that.  
  
“Leaf water.” He hissed as he opened his thermos. “So… how are things with Garrus?” He glanced over at her from the corner of his eye.  
  
“I think it’s going well.” She folded her hands in her lap. “We’re getting to know each other.”  
  
“Mmhmm.” Jeff looked forward again and made a show of pressing a few buttons. “And?”  
  
“He’s a really nice guy.” She shrugged her shoulders, not knowing what the pilot was trying to get at.  
  
“Okay – _no_ – Garrus is not a nice guy – he’s a fucking _great_ guy, kay?” He snorted and Vaike raised her eyebrow. “He’s loyal as fuck, pretty damn good sniper and –“  
  
“Are you trying to play wingman for him?” Vaike leaned closer towards ‘Joker’ Jeff Moreau and offered a playful smile. “That’s adorable!”  
  
“You’re really not winning any points with me right now.” He was a snarky little thing, Vaike sat back in the chair.  
  
“Garrus is a _great_ guy. I’m enjoying learning about him and growing closer to him.” Vaike admitted in a sincere tone, “But I like keeping work and personal matters separate and I’m starting to understand that’s pretty damn hard here.” She sighed.  
  
“Normandy crew is family. Well, the Cerberus crew are kinda getting there, and well – I still don’t trust Thane, he is super, _super_ scary. I bet he could kill a man with just a glance or something.” He took a sip of his coffee and hummed, “Okay, most of the people on this ship could kill a person with their fucking pinky finger.” Vaike laughed softly,  
  
“Best advice? Don’t piss anyone off.” She teased and he humored her with a smirk.  
  
“Easier said than done.” She pretended to lift a cup in the air to cheer with him to that.  
  
“ _Terviseks_.” He choked on his coffee and gave her a wide-eyed look.  
  
“What the hell did you just say?”  
  
“It’s ‘ _cheers_ ’ in Estonian.” She ran her hands down her face. “I forgot it kind of sounds like 'tur sex'. I don’t know why, my brothers used to tease me about it.” She groaned loudly.  
  
“Oh shit that’s priceless.” He recovered quickly before taking another sip. “Tur sex.”  
  
“So how much further until we reach the Citadel?” She scooted to the edge of her seat.  
  
“We should be there in twenty hours or so – EDI?” His tone shifted ever so slightly when he turned his attention to the AI.  
  
“We should be arriving at the Citadel in twenty-one hours and fifteen minutes if travel time is optimal.” EDI responded.  
  
“Oh great, it’ll be nice to wear my own clothes again.” Vaike rose to her feet and stretched slightly as she did so.  
  
“So wait – _all_ your clothes are borrowed?” Jeff glanced over her figure for a second. “… Whose underwear are you wearing?”  
  
Vaike started back towards the elevator, letting out a loud laugh, “I haven’t asked.”


	11. Boy Who Cries Wolf

Vaike curled her hair with her index finger as she sat on the floor of the main battery, answering the vast number of messages in her inbox. Family, friends, and old co-workers had filled up her inbox checking in, asking about her reassignment, or asking a few work-related advice questions. Garrus was doing some tinkering or something – she never was quite that good with tech to know what he was doing – but the two of them had fallen into a comfortable habit of just spending time together.  
  
“Ugh Ants.” Vaike groaned and stifled a giggle when she noticed Garrus jump slightly. “Sorry – my brother was supposed to send the family a message for me, and apparently they can tell he’s covering for me because he’s a shit liar.”  
  
“I thought ants were a Earth bug? Shepard mentioned them when we tangled with some Rachni.” Garrus looked at her a bit confused, it was an endearing look on him though.  
  
“You’ve fought Rachni? I thought they went extinct?” She hummed for a second before leaning against the wall, “Ants is an old Estonian name – ever heard the name John?” He nodded his head, “It sort of means the same thing? It’s a pretty ancient name even for Estonians but Mom and Dad wanted to give us all proper Estonian names.”  
  
“Garrus was the name of a general a few centuries ago.” He admitted to her, “We’re supposedly distantly related.” He sighed as he looked back at his screen, “So… How many siblings do you have? I’ve heard you mention brothers and a sister…”  
  
“Three brothers and a sister. I’m the fourth born.” She admitted. “Priit, Ants, Leelo, me, and Seppo.” She counted with the left hand, sticking a finger down with each name called. “And you?”  
  
“Just the one sister – Solana.”  
  
“Oh! That’s a beautiful name. And your parents’? My mother’s name is Liisa and my father’s name is Harold.” She told him, rising up from her sitting place and stretching her legs a little.  
  
“Castis and Marna.” She watched him close out of the software he’d been applying code to and turn to focus on her, “What did your parents think of your soulmark?”   
  
“Mom was excited. Ant’s already had a Quarian mark – she saw it as getting a complete Dextro set.” She joked before getting a little bit more serious, “Mom believed that our soulmarks would lead to the races getting closer together, that it was a sign that the galaxy was becoming a smaller place. It excited her.” She admitted running her fingers through her hair, “She’s always had a big heart, though.”  
  
“My father hated it at first. He waited four years for a mark to show, and then a Turian/Human design started to form. He didn’t fight in the war, but lost friends and family – my mother though, she thought a lot like yours.” He offered her a smile, his mandibles spreading and causing her to smile back. _It was a cute, infectious smile._  
  
“My mom is going to want to meet you immediately.” She admitted softly, tucking her brunette hair behind her ear. “It’s why I have Ants covering for me. We don’t exactly have time to go to Earth at the moment…” She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist carefully, offering him a soft smile. “She’s going to spoil the hell out of you when she does meet you.”  
  
“I look forward to it.” She closed her eyes as his forehead pressed down on hers carefully. “I wish you could meet my mother…”  
  
“I’ve met her through the kindness of your words and the warmth of your heart.” She told him softly, she hummed softly along to the subvocals that she could just barely make out, though mostly through the vibrations they caused.  
  
“That’s very poetic.” She giggled softly at the feel of his mandibles against her skin.  
  
“Well it’s the truth, she left an impact on you that will last all of your days.” He hummed in agreement.  
  
“She doesn’t have much longer, Solana is begging me to come home.” She could hear the hurt in his voice, and reached up, running her hand along the un-wounded side of his face.   
  
“Tell her more about what you are doing. You don’t have to give her every little detail, just enough that she understands more. Blame it on me if you need to.” She looked up into his blue eyes. “I wouldn’t mind…”  
  
“Tempting, but I couldn’t. The less she knows, the better. At least I can get enough evidence together to present to the Hierarchy. Otherwise I’m just that – boy who cries wolf, is that the right idiom?”  
  
“Yes, have you heard the story that goes along with it?” She tilted her head as she asked.  
  
“Wait, it’s a story?” His browplates creased.  
  
“Here let me pull it up and I’ll read it to you…” She offered pulling away and bringing up her omnitool.


	12. Seppo

Seppo checked his omnitool as he made his way towards the Docks here on the Citadel. It was his first time here, he was a little more spry and bouncy on his feet than he cared to admit. He ran his hand through his hair nervously as he slipped into the Dock ward and made his way though security with relative ease. Ants had sent him a message saying Vaike was going to be docking soon, and he wanted to surprise her and greet her.  
  
He eyed all the ships with excitement, he was from a port city, yes – but there were so many ships of different styles and colors. _So many_. He bit his lip before checking his omnitool, checking the docking bay for the third time since Ants had forwarded it ten minutes ago.  
  
He spotted the ship easily enough – it was sleek and gorgeous – white and black with some weird logo painted on the side. He leaned against the crate and chewed lightly on his bottom lip. He watched eagerly as an Asari got off the ship, and then a _Krogan_! Humans walked off the ship too – but none of them were Vaike. One redhead lady gave him an odd look but kept walking – It was only a few minutes before he spotted her, coming off the ship with an Turian with busted up armor, another redheaded woman who was also wearing armor – and _kurat! Was that a Drell?_

He watched them talk and come closer slowly, until they were close enough that he knew Vaike would actually hear him, you know, without him having to yell across the station.  
  
“Vaike!” He cupped his mouth with his hands as he called out her name, and then waved at her. He watched her turn her head, and even from a distance noticed her eyes light up.  
  
“Seppo!” She rushed over and threw her arms around him. “What are you doing here?” She grinned up at him before pinching his cheek. “Look how much taller you are then me!”  
  
“I’m the same height I was when you were in Tallinn for the festivals last year.” He rolled his eyes but couldn’t keep the smile off his face. “Ants told me you were coming to the Citadel to pack up your flat and where I could meet up with you.”  
  
“Ants has a big fat mouth.” Vaike huffed as she threw her hands on her hips.  
  
“ _Jumal hoiab lolle ja joodikuid_ *.” Seppo grinned as his sister cheekily as she threw her head back in laughter.  
  
“I cannot think of a better quote to describe him. So… what are you here for?” She raised her eyebrow and suddenly looked far more like their mother than the two of them were willing to admit. At this point, her companions were behind her as well.  
  
“I’ve been excepted into a program here on the Citadel, they’re currently investigating the difference between Levo and Dextro building blocks and seeing if they can’t create dual amino microorganisms.” He grinned at her, the same too-wide grin their father had when he was all too excited about something – _usually after he’d move something he knew their mother would need on a higher shelf than it had been_.  
  
“My little brother, the scientist.” She cooed and the blood rushed to his cheeks.  
  
“Ants is a scientist too.” He pointed out and Vaike snorted,  
  
“Ants only went into electrical engineering because he thought it would impress his bondmate.” Vaike ruffled his hair and he quickly tried to duck away from her ministrations. “Guys this is my little brother Seppo, Seppo this is Commander Shepard, Thane Krios, and uh – Garrus Vakarian.” She pulled her hand away to motion to each of them as she said their names.  
  
“Very nice to meet all of you.” Seppo nodded politely, sliding his hands behind his back and clasping them as he straightened his spine. “I’m sure I would have heard nice things about all of you if Vaike cared to return her messages.”  
  
“Hey! I totally replied to your messages yesterday.” Vaike crossed her arms across her chest.  
  
“Yes, in the most vague words I have ever heard from you in my entire life.” Seppo shot back. “Ants agreed that you would be more likely to slip up and tell me what’s up if I showed up in person.”  
  
“I’m going to punch him in the face.” Vaike sighed and her companions all looked amused.  
  
“Can you even reach his face?” Seppo countered.  
  
“Yeah, yeah, make fun of your short sister.” Vaike rolled her eyes. “Garrus, I’ll meet you later, just send me a message when you’re done with your errands - I’m going to guess that Seppo has already unloaded his stuff at my place.”  
  
“You’d guess right.” Seppo offered a smile at the Turian his sister was talking to. “Uncle Arto didn’t lay down all that money for you to hog the entire flat. Besides, you don’t exactly need it right now…”  
  
“Oh I agree, I just don’t want anyone drinking the Vodka with the snake in it – that is for emergencies only.” She took her brother by the arm and smiled back at the three who were still all too amused with the friendly bantering between siblings – and were slightly confused about what she had just said. “Just call me if you need help with the council. Sparatus can’t say no to me.”  
  
“I think we’ll be alright.” Shepard offered a smile in return that made Seppo’s legs feel a little weak. “Anderson can’t say no to me.”  
  
“Still with the two of us, we have half the council, no?” Vaike winked at the woman and began to tug her brother away.  
  
“She’s a lot prettier than she is in the vids.” Seppo whispered to his sister, trying not to be overheard. But the snickers behind him told him, that perhaps he hadn’t been as quiet as he thought he’d been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Jumal hoiab lolle ja joodikuid." is an old quote that translates to "God cares for idiots and drunks." It's meant to be a snarky/playful remark for when someone does something pretty stupid. Estonians also love to drink, and well drunk shenanigans happen.


	13. Bonding

“So – Garrus is my bondmate.” Vaike sat on the floor of her flat – well her family’s flat – with her little brother. He jerked his head up from helping her shift her knickknacks around, his eyes wide.  
  
“So that’s what you’re hiding! Why?” His surprised expression turned to confusion quickly.  
  
“Mom would want us to drop what we’re doing to visit.” She pointed out and he hummed in agreement.  
  
“So your reassignment?” Seppo tilted his head.  
  
“Sparatus wants me to make sure Shepard isn’t racist and doesn’t do anything too crazy. Spectres are for life.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Apparently, he knew Garrus was my bondmate, but didn’t know where he was while I was working as his aide. Then Garrus came back on the radar when Shepard did.”  
  
“I guess that makes sense – Turians believe their soulmarks lead them to loyal mates, Garrus would never second guess your presence. He would be there to stand up for you if anything happened, if any of Shepard’s crew had any problems with you.” Seppo shook up the snowglobe from Helsinki that had made its way into the flat.  
  
“He didn’t exactly warn me.” She sighed, knowing full well she couldn’t tell anyone – especially not her little brother – that she’d actually been kidnapped and not given this task. Thank the gods that Sparatus had agreed to the white lie when they’d talk shortly after her rescue, along with Shepard. He’d agreed that the cover story was sensible, and that small reports of what Shepard was up to would be pass along to him, since she herself was already sending them to Anderson, would be a good addition.  
  
Shepard thought it was a damn good job. If the Collectors were connected to the Reapers like she thought they would be, the more intel given to Council members the better. It could help garner support. Vaike still couldn’t wrap her head around the Collectors or Reapers, but Garrus had fought them – she could see it in his eyes when he talked about them.  
  
“Well that’s shit, but at least you’re getting to know your bondmate. Do you like him?” Seppo set the snowglobe on the side table, along with the framed picture of their parents that he had pulled off the shelf. Vaike was letting him decide where to put stuff, since it would be his flat for a while. But the whole place needed some dusting.  
  
“He’s pretty damn cute. He’s a bit nervous around me, like he’s going to put his foot in his mouth or something.” Seppo couldn’t help but smile at the look on his sister’s face, she was definitely smitten, or damn near close enough that it radiated from her.  
  
“So – bonding officially anytime soon?” He lifted the little figurine of the Viru Gate in one of his hands and studied it from a moment, secondhand embarrassment from his sister’s red face slowly seeping into his bones.  
  
“Uh – not yet. We h-haven’t even kissed – _okay_ so we have the Turian way, but not the Human way.” She sputtered a little. It almost unnerved him, usually his sister was never phased, but he guessed soulmates did this to a person. Ants was a snarky ass most of the time until Rael came around, Priit always had this soft mushy look in his eyes when he glanced at Karissa, the colony-born girl he met while still in the Alliance – Leelo was a feisty woman too, but had a softness and vulnerability with her soulmate – Paavo, the Norwegian she brought home only last year. It was then that Seppo realized he was the only one who didn’t know his soulmate.  
  
He was the youngest, yes. But Seppo also had the most visible bondmark of the Koits. He self consciously ran his fingers across his mouth. His bondmark starting just below his lips, covering his chin and underneath it. The black lines bold against his pale skin.  
  
“You’ll find them soon, Seppo.” She told him softly, noticing what he was doing. He turned red and jerked his hand from the marks.  
  
“I-I know. It’s just, I’m the only one left.” He told her and she snorted, wrapping her arms around him.  
  
“Enjoy the peace and quiet, what if they’re like Ants?” She offered him a sly grin.  
  
“Only you could ruin this heartwarming moment between us…” He huffed sarcastically.  
  
“It’s a gift.”


	14. River Rocks

“I’m so hungry, are you hungry?” Vaike laid sprawled across the couch, eyes closed. She listened to Seppo’s grunt of agreement from the floor and snorted softly. “Probably should order something for Garrus too, he’s supposed to come over soon – whenever he finishes whatever he needed to do with Shepard.”  
  
“So what’s it like?” She opened her eyes, and turned her head, watching as her brother rose from the floor, putting her Turian-made volcanic ash vase back onto the coffee table where it has been.  
  
“With Garrus?” She stretched her arms and legs before she herself got up.  
  
“ _No_ , working on a ship – with the first Human Spectre.” He ran a hand through his blond hair before switching the placement his framed picture of him and his friends with her framed picture of the old tree they’d all grown up under.  
  
“Hm, that does fit a bit better.” She murmured softly, eyeing the shelf and all its books and knickknacks. “Definitely suits you more, but in a good way. Glad you brought some of your stuff along, otherwise you would have been a bachelor living in grandma’s cottage.” Seppo laughed,  
  
“Come on Grandma, details and dinner please.” He motioned for her to hurry up, she then proceeded to pretend she was using a walker and _very s-l-o-w-l-y_ made her way into the kitchen where she kept some take out menus in a drawer for those nights she just couldn’t be damned.  
  
“It’s pretty chill so far, they haven’t really done anything since I came aboard. Shepard wants me to train a little more with some of the more trained members of her crew. I’ve not got much official training other than what Sparatus made all us aids go through.” She shrugged her shoulders, “The crew is definitely colorful, good company for the most part.”  
  
“So dad’s Forest Men training doesn’t count?” Seppo teased, peeking over her shoulder at the different menus as she spread them out.  
  
“Foraging for mushrooms and rationing ammo don’t necessarily help on a spaceship. I do however, still have great aim with a pistol if need be. Okay, just to be clear - these menus with a purple star at the top are Dextro menus, and these menus with the yellow ‘x’ are Levo ones.” She pointed to the symbols she had drawn in marker a few months ago.  
  
“You coordinated your menus?” There was a tone of disbelief in her voice.  
  
“Turian co-workers, remember? I would invite them over to compare notes, gain additional understanding, and for a little down time every now and again.” She stuck her tongue out at him and quickly ran her eyes over the Dextro menus. “I think Garrus would like Powsk and Kava.” She hummed to herself for a second.  
  
“Powsk is that meatloaf thing on a bed of those stewed roots, right? I know Kava’s sorta like a coffee equivalent, the number of times I’ve mixed it up for mom is way up there.” Seppo scratched his stomach through his shirt as he started looking over the Levo menus.  
  
“Yeah, mom makes a variety of it that looks like meatloaf over mashed potatoes.” Vaike typed the restaurant’s name into her omnitool and tracked down their ordering form. She quickly filled out what she thought Garrus would like, and sent it in with her address attached.  
  
“Oh why don’t we have meatloaf and mashed potatoes then? This place has it.” He tapped his finger on the name of the restaurant _Western Roundup_. “That’s a terrible name.”  
  
“It’s owned by an Asari who was born in that time period and found it… _humorous_. Doesn’t quite get that not all Humans get the reference or understand her theme.” She admitted, “She’s really sweet though.”  
  
“Oh, did I tell you mom’s thinking of opening a hostel for Quarians?” She watched as her brother filled out the form for the _Western Roundup_ for the two of them.  
  
“She’s mentioned it in the past, but she wants Rael to be onboard with it. Thinks it will look better with a Quarian as the face of it – it’s a good idea, but it’s going to be a competitive market soon enough as we get more Quarians for pilgrimages, _and_ clean rooms are expensive to maintain.” She gathered up the menus, stacking them carefully before putting them back into their drawer. “Mom will want to charge the minimum and won’t make much profit from it, you know how golden her heart is.”  
  
Vaike smiled as her omnitool flashed with a message from Garrus. He’d be here in ten minutes or so.  
  
“I’m going to grab a quick shower. Here’s the chit for dinner.” Vaike pulled a chit from a hidden spot – under the pot of river rocks that sat on the counter.  
  
“… You hide your credit chit under a pot of river rocks?” Seppo blinked at her.  
  
“It’s for food purchases only, I lose shit when I’m drinking so I keep that chit in the same place at all times. I also get hungry when I’m drinking… so yeah…” She started towards her room.  
  
“I guess that’s fair…”  



	15. Snakes

Seppo hopped up off the couch when the door buzzed. He snatched the chit off the coffee table and made his way quickly to the door, only to be met by blue armor. _Oh_.  
  
“Oh hey man, come right in – Vaike’s in the shower. She ordered you some food that should be here soon, and we got something similar for us as well.” Seppo offered a smile to the Turian, who he was pretty sure was nervous – but wasn’t _completely_ sure, that was Vaike’s field.  
  
“Uh right, that’s nice of her.” His mandibles shifted in and out a few times before they settled down. _Nope, definitely nervous_.  
  
“So… do you wear armor everywhere?” Seppo motioned towards the couch and started ahead of him.  
  
“Most places.” Garrus admitted. “Never know what’s going to happen.”  
  
“I suppose that’s fair.” The blond human sat on the couch, leaning back and sighing in content. “It just looks uncomfortable.”  
  
“It can be.” The Turian eyed the couch.  
  
“Dude, you can take it off if it’s bothering you. You’re wearing an undersuit, yeah?” Seppo groaned as the door buzzed but jolted up anyway and hurried over. “My room’s the first door on the left, just dump it, eh?”  
  
Seppo dealt with the first delivery – judging by the curious Turian, Garrus’ food, and put the bag on the counter just in time to hear the door buzz again. He hadn’t had the chance to even check if Garrus had taken him up on his offer – but the second delivery went smoothly too, this time being delivered by a black-haired Human who seemed to be a year or two younger than him.  
  
He impatiently made his way over to the counter and pulled the containers from one of the bags eagerly. His plastic fork slamming into a piece of meatloaf, which quickly went into his mouth. Garrus reappeared not a moment later, giving him a weird look and then turning to his own bag when he pointed to it with the now empty fork.  
  
“We’ve been cleaning and moving stuff around the apartment. Vaike insisted I make this place look more like a bachelor pad and less like a grandma’s cottage so I don’t embarrass myself in front of my new friends and co-workers.” He joked to the Turian, who didn’t seem to quite get the reference. “Vaike’s tastes are a bit old-fashioned in some ways.” He tried to explain.  
  
“Ah, I see… She doesn’t seem very matronly to me…” Garrus tried to comment carefully.  
  
“Her religious views are very old fashioned, the old ways. Most Estonians don’t bother with them. She also likes tacky little knickknacks. Come on, I’ll point out a few of her favorites for you.”  
  
And so the two men ended up eating meatloaf from their containers, standing in front of the bookshelf filled with books and knickknacks. Garrus was learning more about his bondmate through her brother’s humorous tales, as the two of them were building somewhat of a brotherly bond of their own.  
  
“And this is the snake infused vodka that no one is allowed to have.” Seppo pointed to the oddest object on the entire shelf with his fork. “Estonians used to believe snakes had – I don’t know if it medicinal or magical powers or whatever – but they had these weird beliefs, like wearing a dead snake around your shoulders meant you couldn’t be cursed again. So this is Vaike’s _special special_ vodka.”  
  
“That it is. It’s for emotional healing.” Vaike’s voice brought the two men’s attention to where she stood. She had on a pair of green pants, a light brown top, and had her hair dried, put back into a messy bun.  
  
“Emotional healing, like what?” Vaike tried not to glance down at how narrow Garrus’ waist looked in his undersuit, or at how wide his hips looked, as she made her way to the counter to break into her own meatloaf.  
  
“It’s for uplifting. For bettering people’s outlooks. If you feel cursed or like you can’t fall any further. Snakes were an animal of protection and strength.” She raised her eyebrow at the two men. “It’s not really for recreational use. Plus, it weirds the fuck out of most people.”  
  
“There is a dead animal in the liquor, of course it weirds out people.” Garrus made a snort-like sound that made Vaike only smile brighter.  
  
“More for me at the end of the day.” She joked, adding a wink at the end of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So my source for snakes as a protective animal is actually the Estonian pop-singer Kerli who recently has done more in embracing her roots, and looking into Estonian traditions and mythology for her music videos and inspiration. She recently got a snake tattoo in honor of the snake's place in traditional healing. There is also a video her youtube where she meets with a practitioner who lets her wear a dead snake around her shoulders. 
> 
> All in all, it's pretty interesting stuff. 
> 
> Estonia was one of the last regions of Europe that were Christianized, but Estonians also viewed Christianity as an outside force that tried to rule over them. In the 1900s there was an Estonian movement to reclaim their Pagan beliefs (as they had finally gained independence as their own country), that was centralized in the University town of Tartu, but when the Soviet Union rolled in, many of these religious leaders were killed due to their beliefs. However many Pagan holidays and beliefs are still celebrated in Estonia even today, and even Christian holidays have Pagan beliefs thrown in. Some Estonians are looking towards the past to help form their purely "Estonian" identity as they try to erase Russian influence a bit more, but like many countries and people, Estonia is also moving away from religion all together and is known as being one of the least religious countries in the world.
> 
> Though, in a recent study - nearly 60% of the country's citizens still believe that trees have spirits.


	16. Nakedness

Vaike lifted her head from Garrus’ shoulder, the soft volume of the vid playing doing its best to lull her to sleep. They'd spent the evening talking with and without Seppo, he'd gone to bed hours ago using jetlag as an excuse. “Got anything comfortable to wear to bed?” He looked down at her, mandibles doing that nervous twitch they often did around her. She found it nauseatingly cute, not that she’d said a damn word about it. The second he knew she could read Turian expressions nearly as good as Human ones would be the second she couldn’t mentally coo over his nervousness – it wasn’t like she had the subvocal implant that was being tested now.

“Uh – I left my sleeping clothes on the ship.” He admitted. Vaike let her eyes fall to his undersuit and the way it clung to his body – _damn he had nice hips_.  
  
“You’ll have to remember to bring them next time.” She teased softly, “In any case, you’ll probably be far more comfortable naked than in your undersuit.” She ignored the way the nervous taping of his talons stilled at her words. “Just saying, that is hide tight on you, it can’t be comfortable to sleep in.”  
  
“I’ve done it before, I’ve slept in armor before too.” Garrus subvocals were easily felt through their close contact. _She’d watch the man kill two men with one bullet before and he was getting nervous at the thought of being naked around her._

“Just because you’ve done something once, doesn’t mean you should do it again. If it makes you feel better, I can sleep naked too.” His taloned hand dug into his leg, his subvocals practically shivered all on their own.  
  
“Your brother is in the next room over.” She could finally hear his nervousness slip into his actual voice and looked up at him coyly, using this as the time to act.  
  
“My brother sleeps heavily, and the walls are thick.” She offered him a crooked smile.  
  
“You seem very sure about that…” His brow plates rose.  
  
“I used to host some of my old co-workers. If I can’t hear two Turians from behind a door while awake, I doubt Seppo will hear one Turian from behind two doors while asleep. Besides, this is much more soundproof than the Main Battery. Do you really want our first time together where everyone is eating dinner fifty meters or so from us?” She quirked her eyebrow at him. She noticed some flushing in his face, enjoying the color it turned his facial plates. She quickly took a mental note of it.  
  
“Which bedroom is yours again?” He turned and looked at her dead in the eyes. His expression, while still nervous had a hint of something else to it. Something that made her feel like her spine was melting just a bit. She let out a soft giggle and stood, grabbing both his hands and helping him up.  
  
“Just follow me, darling.” She led him down the hall, past the half-bath for guests, and Seppo’s room (which had once been the guest room) and led him into her bedroom, closing the door quickly.  
  
Garrus seemed distracted, looking around her bedroom – she couldn’t blame him, it must be odd to him. She had an Estonian flag framed on the wall, or rather her uncle did – she had claimed his old room when he had given her use of the place. She also had a high-tech false window screen in the opposite wall, just over her large bed. The window was linked to a live streaming camera back in Estonia, on the island of Saaremaa to be more precise. It was on a trail on some land the family owned.  
  
Vaike stopped and watched the view just as Garrus did.  
  
“Is that your homeland?” He asked her while undoing the clasps of his undersuit.  
  
“Yes, it’s family land. I know Turians don’t like the cold…” She eyed the snow with a fondness.  
  
“Something tells me you’d keep me warm.” He tried to tease her, turning to face her only to see she was stripped down to her undergarments already.  
  
“Yes I would.” Her fingers joined his on his suit, helping him with the clasps. “Perhaps I shall show you _how_.” A deep chuckle met her ears, and her hands began to drag the fabric from his form.  
  
“I thought we were going to get to know each other first.” He began to tease her once more.  
  
“Garrus, if you want me to stop all you have to do is ask.” She quirked her eyebrow and pulled her hands from his person.  
  
“ _Spirits no_.” His hands went to her waist, his eyes studying the design that graced up her left side. “I’ve got some exploring I want to do.”  
  
“Have you looked into –“ His forehead was pressed against hers in an instant.  
  
“I’ve known for twenty-five years that I had a Human bondmate. _Of course_ I looked into this.” It was her turn to let out a shaky breath.


	17. Bonding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's your sexual content warning.

Vaike slid her fingers down his bare waist and underneath the undersuit, where it sat bunched at the top of his hips. His breathing was growing heavy, she could feel it against her cheek. She tilted her head back and pressed up on her toes, catching his mouth plates with her lips. _She didn’t know where he’d learned it, and wasn’t about to ask,_ but quickly accepted his tongue into her mouth. She ran hers back along it, twirling it around his, before pulling it back so she could suck on his very carefully.  
  
The loud groan directly into her mouth caused her to dig her nails into the softer hide her fingers were caressing, and her hips to buckle towards his as his began to press into her. She pulled back, breathing deeply as her hands attacked the fabric of his undersuit once more. Tugging the black fabric over his hips and pushing it further still.  
  
Garrus’ hands were trailing across her shoulders, her collarbone, and slowly dipping down to her chest. He grasped her lacily clad breasts and squeezed lightly, she threw her head back as she moaned softly. His tongue met her neck quickly thereafter and Vaike found herself clinging to his chest, her mission to dispose him of his clothing now at a standstill. Moaning loudly as his teeth lightly scratched her pale skin, she ran her nails against his waist, causing him to purr into her neck with a mix of both his primary vocals and subvocals.  
  
“Bed.” She gasped out, the two of them nearly ruined from light touching on its own. _Was this what it was like when you knew the other was your soulmate?_ Nothing had stirred her up so quickly – so strongly – in the past. _Not her American girlfriend, or the Icelandic boyfriend – not even that Drell she’d swapped oral favors with one night._ Vaike could feel her wetness against the lace of her underwear as Garrus hauled her up into his arms almost effortlessly. She pressed kisses against his neck, clung to his solid shoulders and wrapped her legs around his narrow waist.  
  
He practically threw the two of them on the bed, and had this be any other moment she’d probably giggle at how they looked, or tease Garrus for the stumbling he’d just done. But she was coming undone, he was coming undone, and she wanted him to lose himself deep inside of her _now_.  
  
Vaike dislodged herself just long enough to tear her underwear off, the ruined green lace thrown onto the cluttered desk in the room. Garrus eyes were wide, his pupils even wider, and a smug grin came forth from his mandibles before he promptly ripped the other half of the set. Her nipples felt the cold before her brain had even registered what he had done, and a loud moan slipped from her lips. Her back arched, her head thrown back as she tried to draw him in with her legs.  
  
She felt his hands moving below her thighs, pushing down the fabric that kept them apart, and squeezed her legs where they lay draped around his waist. The sounds he was making were becoming less and less familiar to her. His soft moans had turned into something more potent and poisonous now that his subvocals were joining in and rattling her body ever so slightly.  
  
He leaned down and pressed his forehead onto hers, stilling for a moment as they both tried to gather a hint of their senses.  
  
“ _Please_.” She begged softly, her legs unlocking and widening. “ _Need you now_.” She moved just so, pressing her lips against his forehead, and felt him lower his pelvis against her. His knuckles slipped between them for a moment, dragging against her slit and she hissed softly, so near to tears. “Garrrrus.” She whined, willing her eyes open, intent to glare at him.  
  
But the look in his eyes, the look he was giving her made her forget it. Hell, she was pretty sure she’d forgotten her name in that second.  
  
“Vaike.” So that was it, she almost laughed but _gods_ \- her name sounded like sex on his tongue.

Breathing heavily, he carefully lined his cock up with her entrance and pushed forward. As her eyes widened, her mouth did too. Eyes rolling back as the ridges of his cock dragged against her inner walls, and whatever that was about to roll off her tongue was lost not only to her but to her tongue as well as some foreign sound slipped past her lips. She tilted her hips and wrapped her legs back around him as he filled her until nothing separated them. Pelvis met pelvis, and Vaike thought it an appropriate thought that their souls might be touching in a similar fashion too.  
  
They moved together clumsily at first getting to know each other’s movements, the minor differences between how Humans and Turians came together being figured out as they moved. Vaike moans were loud, but she was quite sure that Garrus’ were even louder. One hand was by her head, prompting him up, the other was cradling her waist, talons pressing into her skin. _Gods it felt good_.  
  
Once a solid pace was built, they began to press harder, move faster, even his talons pressed harder. Vaike could feel her peak building, and as her sounds grew higher in pitch Garrus' grew lower - and _fuck_ it was _hot_. She slipped one leg up higher, letting it rest on his shoulder and watched Garrus’ eyes widen as his thrusts became disjointed. Vaike slipped a hand down her torso, and over her pelvis – mostly for show. His subvocals pouring into her as he watched – but also gave her just enough pressure to get herself to her climax. Three gentle swirls around her clitoris and Vaike was _soaring_.  
  
Walls tightening, voice wailing, she pulled Garrus closer to her as best she could – nails dragging down his back as she cried out his name – over and over and over again. She just barely registered his forehead resting on her neck, teeth digging deep into her shoulder as his seed filled her, his cock fully sheathed in her. He pulled his teeth from her slowly, carefully and began to lap at the mark he’d left.  
  
She heard no sound over the beating of her heart, the chase of her lungs trying to catch her breath, and the ringing in her ears. As Garrus softened he fell beside her and carefully brought her towards him, pulling her on top of him and wrapping his arms around her. They both panted as they laid there.  
  
“T-That was amazing.” Vaike took a deep breath and looked up at him with a soft smile.  
  
“I- That was perfect.” He mumbled, his voice just as hoarse as hers, his breathing just as heavy as hers.  
  
“How am I s-supposed to sleep next to you on t-the Normandy, knowing how good _this_ is.” She pushed herself up, looking down at him as he lay there on his back.  
  
“Shore leave. We’ll find a space. We’ll find some time. I-If we have to stay back on the Normandy an extra hour.” Garrus’ talons traced the bite-mark on her shoulder and she twitched slightly at the pain that was starting to let itself known. “I shouldn’t have done that…”  
  
“You’ve been stressed.” She fondled his mandible gently. “Turians aren’t the best with stress.”  
  
“I should have waited to mark you.” His brow plates knitted together much like a Human’s forehead creased when they thought hard.  
  
“I don’t mind.” She pressed her lips against his scarred mandible carefully. “It’ll remind me of tonight – our first time together.”  
  
“Hmm…” His talons scratched lightly against her back causing her to sigh in content. “Still, You’ve only known me a week and a half. I shouldn’t have claimed you as my bonded so soon…”  
  
“Many Turians slip up with their bondmates, especially when under the amount of stress you’ve been under. So what if we’re married in all but law now?” She ran her fingers against his cowl lightly, tracing the edges, “Or do you want to do this all the way?”  
  
“I – The way you talk of your mother – you want to do this traditionally.” His forehead met hers before she sat up carefully, wincing slightly as she felt how raw parts of her body felt, and as his seed seeped out of her and down her thighs.  
  
“Garrus – enough of what _I_ want, enough of what my _mother_ wants.” She threw her leg over his waist and straddled him. “What do _you_ want?”  
  
“You.” His talons pressed into her waist lightly.  
  
“Then I am all yours.”


	18. Worst Kept Secrets

Shepard glanced down at her omnitool as she stepped away from Koylat and Thane, leaving them to their catching up, and hopefully the mending of their relationship – or at least the start of it. Miranda had pinged her, which was odd on its own right, but her eyes narrowed when she saw the subject line.  
  
_Koit_.

She eyed Garrus out of the corner of her eye, he’d been surprisingly giddy during their mission. She had chalked it off originally as him being back on his home turf – but quickly erased that thought when he’d helped _physically twist_ a few arms, and still retained the mood.  
  
She opened the message anyways and scanned over the data Miranda had sent her. It was mundane information about the newest resident of the Normandy. She suspected Miranda was trying to be petty and have the girl removed from the ship. The white lies for having her aboard had smoothed most of the crew over quite easily, even Jack had approved – she’d rather have the council hovering over her than Cerberus any day. Miranda was unaware that in reality Koit was on Normandy to help reel in Garrus and keep him steady. _And it was working too – as far as she knew he’d given up on hunting down Sidonis._  
  
She grinded her teeth lightly, Koit had more physical training than she had admitted to and had an additional associates degree in communications that she hadn’t mentioned. She knew what Lawson was getting around to, Koit was qualified for more than just being an aide – she believed that Koit was some sort of operative or another of the council’s, a spy – not an onlooker. She scrolled through the information and sighed before her eyes widened.  
  
“Hey Garrus, is there anything you forgot to mention today?” She gave him an eat-shitting grin from over her shoulder as she looked back at him.  
  
“Uh…” His mandibles flared nervously and he shifted his weight uneasily from one foot to another. It was like teasing a little brother, she _loved_ it. “So you heard then?”  
  
“You got married in the middle of the night and you can’t even tell your best friend?” She blew a raspberry at him. “I see how much I mean to you.” She teased.  
  
“ _Shit_. Shepard look –“ Garrus facepalmed himself and it took everything in her not to laugh at him. She was so very close though.  
  
“Let me guess, you went a little overboard last night?” She hummed at the end of her question and gave the poor Turian a wink. “That’s gotta be some good sex.”  
  
“It was.” He admitted. “But uh… _fuck_ …” He gathered his confidence only to lose it.  
  
“Your folks know yet?” She closed out of the file and threw a hand on her hip.  
  
“I’m sending a message later.” Shepard could hear his subvocals through her implants, and they were _everywhere_.  
  
“You’re terrible, Garrus.” She let out a chuckle before patting him on his back. “You going to at least invite us all out to drinks to celebrate?” She raised her eyebrow, trying to put on her most serious _commander_ faces.  
  
“Uh… I’d have to ask Vaike about that.” He scratched lightly at the cowl on his armor. Her eyes narrowed on the charred bits for a second.  
  
“Well you know what Humans say, Vakarian – ‘happy wife, happy life’.” She offered him a small smile. “I’m happy for you, buddy – but seriously, please get some new armor before we leave tomorrow.” She pointed at the charred parts of his armor. “It looks fucking awful.”  
  
“I guess even Humans have to get something right every now and again.” He sniffed when she mentioned the quote. “You and Vaike have both expressed your opinion on my armor…” He looked down at the black bits of half-melted armor. “I’ve got an appointment for new armor later.”  
  
“Good, get your wife some armor as well. Miranda has demanded she carry her own weight and join us on foot a few times to prove herself.” Shepard rubbed the back of her neck. “Hell, use Cerberus funds and get yourself some matching armor – that would be damn _cute_.” Garrus threw his head back and laughed so loud that Thane’s attention was brought to them for a few seconds, before turning back to Koylat.  
  
“That might be overkill, Shepard.” He offered her a smirk that only a Turian could pull off.  
  
“Says the Turian with half his face blown off thinking his armor is going to be what intimidates his enemies. You look like a half-burnt buoy or something.” Shepard intimidated the stiff rocking of a buoy by stretching her arms down to her side and waddling like a penguin a few times.  
  
“ _Spirits_ Shepard, you know Turians don’t swim.” He japed back before looking over at Thane and his son, just as she was. “He has a thing for you, you know.”  
  
“Hm, he still loves his wife.” Jane commented back to him softly, just above a whisper.  
  
“Drell view soulmates and soulbonds differently than Turians do. Perhaps you should talk to Vaike about it.” She looked up at Garrus, a look of confusion on her face.  
  
“Why would I talk to your wife about this?” She folded her arms against her armored chest.  
  
“Vaike studied soulbonds, and the lack of them as a part of cultural studies, each culture has their own beliefs for them. She knows what Drell believe. It would be a good way for you to find out about it without searching the extranet where Cerberus could see it or asking Thane outright.” He pointed out to her.  
  
“I guess that’s a good point. Maybe I’ll steal her away from the party you’re going to throw tonight.” She nudged him with her elbow before she started walking away. “Send the coordinates to _all_ the crew, will you?” She called after as she left.


	19. Harold

Vaike couldn’t believe her luck as she sat in the café. Her father’s sly grin mirroring Ant’s as they both looked at her from across the table. _Here to help Seppo settle in, she’d rip her ass off if that was completely true._ Rael at least, was helping Seppo update his omnitool with the most current map of the Citadel. Rael was the only brother Vaike still loved right about now. Her own flesh and blood, trying to sneakily worm their way into her business. She mixed her drink with her straw as she narrowed her eyes at Ants, knowing full damn well why he’d brought dad out of Estonia and onto the Citadel. Vaike’s father was a walking, talking lie detector and she was _fucked_.  
  
And not pleasantly so as she had been last night and this morning.  
  
“So Seppo… has Vaike introduced her to any of her friends yet?” It fell off Ant’s tongue so smoothly that Vaike had to bite her own in an attempt not physically growl at her brother.  
  
“I got to meet Commander Shepard! She’s prettier than the vids made her out to be, softer face.” He took a sip of his own drink.  
  
“That all?” Ants leaned forward and Vaike very carefully nudged his leg, which only made his grin grow.  
  
“Ants, son – there a reason you’re teasing your sister?” Her father sighed as he looked at the younger man beside him.  
  
“Yup.” He leaned back in his seat as he looked across the table at her pointedly. “Spill it, Sis.”

Vaike sighed before taking a deep breath, “I met my soulmate.” Her father’s eyebrows rose and his eyes raked over her looking for tells. “His name is Garrus Vakarian, he’s a part of Shepard’s crew – it’s the whole reason Sparatus stationed me there. Garrus went off the grid when Shepard died, and so when he reappeared, he thought I was the best choice to keep an eye on Shepard…”  
  
“So you’re there because they can’t exactly question your loyalty, smart on the councilor’s behalf.” Harold nodded, his tattooed knuckles tapping lightly on the table as his thoughts visibly deepened. “How does your soulmate feel about that?”  
  
“He understands why I’m there, he also knows I’m impartial and professional.” She leaned forward her her chin resting in her hands, her arms propped on the table now. “He’s got a little PTSD from his time off the grid, and a recent injury he’s still recovering from.”  
  
“Gods he must be all over you.” Ants blurted out and she quickly gave him a dirty glare.  
  
“Ants. Can you not?” She hissed. Their father was sitting right there.

“He’s just being observant, Vaike. Turians don’t handle stress very well. You must be a calming effect on him.” Vaike felt her cheeks grow pink as her father started talking about Turian stress relief. She tuned it out just a little until her omnitool blipped with a message from said Turian. She read over it quickly and bit her tongue again, _she was going to have to tell this lot the news_. “- Turians are a very sex-friendly race. It’s not just procreation, but also stress relief and a way to bond with close friends…”  
  
Vaike sighed heavily and tapped her fingers against the table anxiously, which caused her father to pause in his speech and stare at her.  
  
“There’s more you’re holding back.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “ _Vaike Koit_. What exactly are you keeping to yourself right now.”  
  
“… We bonded last night.” It came out before she could even think about it. It just skydived right off her tongue and out onto the table. Rael’s straw – _ahem_ emergency induction port – fell from his face plate and hit the table with a light thud. Ant’s eyes were as wide as his shit eating grin. Seppo nearly choked on his soda. And Vaike watched as her father’s suspicious glare turned into the brightest smile she could have ever hoped for.  
  
“My little girl! All grown up and bonded!” He quickly called over the Asari waitress and ordered a round of Vodka shots.  
  
“Vaike! You hussy!” Ants threw his head back and laughed loudly.  
  
“On the bright side, you didn’t get knocked up right away like Leelo did.” Seppo pointed out.  
  
“No, I just got married right out of the gate.” She ran her hands down her cheeks.  
  
“Do you regret it?” She watched her father’s face darken.  
  
“No!” She gave a thankful smile to the Asari who hurried their shots to the table and quickly took hers, ignoring the burn that ran down her throat – _she was going to have to break into her snake vodka before she left tomorrow…_ “I’m happy, I’m excited… I just never expected things to go this fast…”  
  
“Vaike, nothing ever happens like you expect it to.” Her father offered her a small smile. “Life just wouldn’t be as grand as it is if it did… Now, I can understand why you’re hiding him from your mother. I love her, but she can be a bit overbearing at times, especially when it comes to you kids, but I think I speak for all of us on this side of the table when I say I’d like to meet him.”  
  
“Well... Garrus said we got roped into throwing a party tonight for the crew to celebrate… Why don’t you join us? It could be fun.” She offered.


	20. Sauna

In the end she had forwarded Garrus her measurements and her preference for light armor as well as a hint of a surprise to come later. She didn’t want to unnecessarily freak him out or anything with the news that her brother, his bondmate, and her father had arrived on the Citadel and would be at the party tonight.  
  
Ants had quickly decided they needed a sauna day to re-bond as a family and to gear up for that night. Vaike couldn’t deny his wish, she was dying to visit a sauna already. The Normandy had decent showers, but station and ship water was always recycled and never made her feel completely clean – sweating everything out worked so much better in her eyes. It also did wonders for her skin and helped her relax.  
  
She leaned back, eyes closed, breathing in the steam as Seppo slapped his arms with what appeared to be an actual birch whisk, but you could never be sure this far from Earth.  
  
“So do I need to give you a safe sex lecture?” Ants asked as he added some water to the hot stones, to add more steam into the private room.  
  
“We got a little carried away, but believe me – lesson learned.” She found herself admitting, stretching her sore legs out. “I’m taking allergy medication as a precaution and have applied enough ointment to my thighs that I could rock a slip and slide at hyper speed.” Seppo snorted loudly and she opened her eyes just in time to see Rael give his bondmate a confusing glance.  
  
“Human water toy.” Ants explained quickly before sighing at his sister, “Vaike, what am I going to do with you, we literally had the talk like three days ago.”  
  
“Oh like you’ve never forgotten with Rael before.” The Quarian shifted slightly as he sat there, the only person presently wrapped in a towel.  
  
“Fine, fine – but do be careful.” Ants waved a hand at her and offered their father a grin as he came back into the sauna from taking a break to cool down and rinse off. Harold Koit raised his eyebrow at the suspicious grin but sat back in his original seat, taking the birch branch when it was offered to him by Seppo.  
  
Vaike wasn’t sure who’d figured it out – the Finns or the Russians, possibly the Estonians themselves, who had discovered that Quarians could actively participate in saunas with little to no side effects. With purified water to cool down and wash off, and the fact that saunas were long used as sterile - went as far as being birthing spaces in the past – they were a great alternative to small stuffy clean rooms and meant that Quarians could interact with other races without their suits. Unfortunately the trend hadn’t caught on – probably because the lack of knowledge on the matter.  
  
Vaike offered a grin to her brother-in-law, admiring his lavender complexion, sharp facial features, and his long black hair that was pulled up in a ponytail, courtesy of Ants himself. His gray eyes narrowed as she looked his way,  
  
“What are you looking at, Vaike?” They’d only been in the sauna once together before, when she visited Estonia for the song and dance festival last year. But he wasn’t acting nearly as shy and worried as he had then, he seemed to have – uh – _warmed_ up to it.  
  
“I’m just happy that you seem to look more peaceful than the last time I saw you do this.” She shrugged her shoulders and bit her cheek, trying not to laugh as the Quarian did his best to focus on her head and nothing more.  
  
Humans from other cultures had a hard enough time with nudity, some of the alien races were worse – the Quarians were definitely one of them, with their suits being such a staple to their every day lives and identities.  
  
“We do this like once a week now.” Ants replied taking the birch branch from their father. “He’s starting to like it more than the clean rooms.”  
  
“Of course he is, it’s more social.” Vaike rolled her eyes and offered him a smile. “I’m just happy that you’re finding yourself at home in Estonia.”  
  
“You’re worried that your bondmate won’t?” Vaike turned to her father and sighed.  
  
“I’m sure he’d like it in the summer… but I’m also sure there’s plenty of things a Turian won’t like about Estonia. And with Palaven’s radiation levels, I can’t exactly enjoy the view without some sort of suit or protection.” She pointed out, only slightly jealous that Ants and Rael took frequent hikes through the bog, it had been one of the things she and Ants had done often growing up. The fresh cranberries and the serenity of the scenery was amazing. But a Turian would sink like a cinderblock if they took one step off the platform – actually, they might _break_ the wooden trail.  
  
“Ah – so you’re worried that neither of you will find a home in the other’s?” Harold offered his daughter a light pat on the back before leaning back and closing his eyes, letting the steam relax him. “That’s the thing about love, Vaike, you make your own home together. Compromise is a thing, you know. Visiting Estonia certain parts of the year, doing the same with Palaven, possibly in the areas least affected by radiation, and spending the rest of the year elsewhere, wherever you make your home.”  
  
Her father was right, he often was. But she had grown up on Estonian lore and music, the only grandchild more than just eager to sit on her grandmother’s lap and learn the old ways. The only one who wanted so hard to preserve the culture that seemed to be holding on by a thread. In some ways, it had always been bittersweet to have a Turian bondmate, because that would mean leaving Earth behind at some point, if only just for some parts of the year.  
  
“You’re right.” She sighed heavily and rose to take a dip in the plunge pool. “I’m just overthinking things.”  
  
“Estonia is in your blood – your bones, _laululind_ , it never leaves you.“ Her father’s words echoed in her head as she dipped into the cold water, diving to the bottom of the small but deep pool only to resurfaced, her hands running over her wet hair.  
  
“I need to stop overthinking.” She mumbled to herself before diving back underwater.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Laululind translates to songbird.


	21. Begin the Introductions

Ants had dried and curled her hair so it fell in light waves. She wore make up but it was simple and natural looking. The sauna had done wonders for her skin irritation, but she still had applied another layer of ointment over her thighs more of a precaution than anything else. She’d taken her second dose of her daily Dextro-allergy medication as well. It wasn’t as if she was allergic or anything, but until her body grew use to Garrus’ it was a good precaution.  
  
She glanced at herself in the mirror, a simple light blue dress, simple black pumps. The only thing that made her outfit worth wild was the black, Swedish leather jacket and the classy necklace she’d gotten for her last birthday, made by some Estonian designer her mother and sister knew far more about than her. She wondered if she looked too plain, but brushed the thought aside. Ants would have picked out something different when he saw it laying out on her bed if he thought it too plain.  
  
She stepped out and met the rest of the Koits in the living room. Seppo and Ants looked to be wearing similar outfits, she had no doubt that Ants had bossed Seppo to wear what he was. Rael was so very lucky that Ants could only change out the fabric detailing of his suit, and add minor accessories to his look.  
  
Her father’s smile was somehow brighter than it had been all day when he looked at her. “Look at you, as gorgeous as always – now let’s go meet your husband, hm? I have _many_ questions to ask him.”  
  
“Dad.” She warned him, though her tone was all tease. She knew her father wasn’t going to interrogate Garrus, she had a strong hunch that she’d have to glare down Ants a few times though. “Now, no one embarrass me or I’m kicking you out of the bar.”  
  
“Yes ma’am.” Ants saluted her and she rolled her eyes, pushing the four Koit men towards the door. “Come on, I can’t be late to my own party.”

 

 

  
Vaike arrived five minutes late – which was fashionably late to many, she was sure, but was making her sweat bullets as she tried to powerwalk in her pumps.  
  
“Vaike, calm down, it’s not like they could start the party without you.” Seppo tried to reason with her.  
  
“This is the last time I let Rael show me a short-cut that’s on his map.” She huffed out as she slowed down, finally seeing the bar’s neon sign as she turned the corner.  
  
“I told you we should have left twenty minutes earlier than we did.” Rael’s reply was dry but held some humor to it, she promptly ignored it as she took a few deep breaths.  
  
“You going to be alright?” Vaike flashed a smile up to her father.  
  
“I’m fine, let’s get going, hm?” She took his arm in hers when he offered it.  
  
The bar wasn’t half as darkly lit as most of the Citadel’s bars were. It had a nice ambiance, she could see Turian influence with more Asari and Human aesthesis tossed into it and knew right away why Garrus had picked the place. It was relatively empty though, and she was almost confused before she noticed a very bubbily and probably buzzed Yeoman Kelly waving at her from a side door.  
  
“Oh my god, is this your family?” She gushed, before quickly introducing herself to the three Human men, and the one Quarian. “Oh this is so exciting!”  
  
“These are my brothers, Seppo and Ants, my brother-in-law, Rael, and my father – Harold.” She quickly introduced them to the redhead who swiftly took her father’s hands into her own and shook them both excitedly.  
  
“It’s such a pleasure! How did you get here on such short notice?”  
  
“The pleasure’s all mine, Kelly. We happened to arrive to help my youngest son move in.” Vaike did her best to ignore the look on Kelly’s face when her father’s deep accent reached her ears. “We were overjoyed to find out there would be a celebration while we were here.”  
  
“And I am _overjoyed_ that you could make it! Come in, come in.” Kelly escorted them through the door and down a short hallway until they came to a private room which had a pretty cool atmosphere of its own.  The lights were far more subdued than the main bar’s had been, it was a bit brighter as well, and the music coming through the speakers was just the right tempo and volume. “You’re the last ones here, so we should be all ready to start.” She informed them.  
  
She caught Garrus’ figure, the lone Turian in the room, as he stood there talking with Joker, who was sitting in a chair, Shepard who was sitting a table, and Thane who was also standing, and spotted her first.  
  
“Ah Vaike, it’s not like you to be late.” The Drell teased lightly before his eyes slipped over the company she had brought with her.  
  
“I didn’t expect this lot coming onto the Citadel to “help Seppo move in”.” She motioned to the four men behind her.  
  
“And I didn’t expect you to take so long to get dressed.” Ants groaned shoving her aside as he made his way towards the stocked bar. “Where’s the vodka at?”  
  
“… Please tell me I was adopted.” She looked up at her father who grinned at her wryly.  
  
“Afraid not, laululind, however – Krios, I must say it’s good to see you again.”


	22. Harry Saar

“Ah Harry Saar.” Thane reached forward and shook his hand, his face was stoic but familiarity flashed in his onyx eyes. “You are a friend - no family - of Ms. Koit? I see the resemblance now.”  
  
“She is my younger daughter. I believe we mentioned our families to one another when we found our paths meeting – was it fifteen years ago?” Harold shook the Drell’s hand firmly, giving him a warm lopsided smile. “You’ve aged well.”  
  
“Not as well as I would have liked to.” Vaike blinked at Thane’s teasing tone and raised her eyebrow at her father.  
  
“I’m going to need to hear this story later.” Vaike offered a slightly awkward smile to Garrus, “But first you wanted to meet Garrus, yes?”  
  
“Ah yes, my newest son-in-law.” Harold shifted his appraising eyes from the Drell to the Turian before him. “It’s a pleasure to meet you son, I’ve heard nothing but good things from Vaike.” He took the Turian by the upper arm, knowing it was a Turian greeting.  
  
“Uh – it’s good to meet you too sir. I had no idea you were on the Citadel.” The Turian seemed to be in a bit of shock and was definitely nervous. Harold ignored the way he shuffled on his feet and how loose his responding grip on his shoulder was.  
  
“Thought we’d surprise Vaike as we helped Seppo settle in, she offered us a surprise of her own.” He offered a complimentary nod to Commander Shepard and the younger man sitting at the table. “Harold Koit, though back when I was with the Alliance I went by Harry Saar.”  
  
“The _Harry Saar_?” Shepard’s eyes narrowed at him. “Anderson speaks highly of you. Why the name change? I had no idea you were Vaike’s father…”  
  
“Retirement isn’t retirement unless you drop off the grid completely. I took my wife’s name when we married but didn’t change it in the service. Special Ops can be a tricky thing to detangle yourself from.” He offered, shrugging his shoulders.  
  
“Oh – so that’s why we were subjected to the torture that is Forest Men training.” Ants waltzed over carrying two wine glasses full of what appeared to be drinks, most likely mixed with Vodka and some other flavoring.  
  
“It’s always handy to know how to survive in the wilderness with limited resources.” Harold offered his son a grin before swiping his drinks. “Why thank you, Ants.” He kept the grin as Ants huffed at the lost of his drinks. “Why don’t you introduce yourself to your brother-in-law while I reacquaint myself with an old companion?” He offered the drink in his left hand to the Drell, but kept the other, motioning with his head towards an empty corner in the bar.  
  
“Oh shit - yeah, hi I’m Ants, I’m the favorite brother. I’m married to this handsome Quarian right here, his name is Rael, and if you ever need Dextro-Levo sex tips I am so your man.” Harry bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing at Ant’s attempts of bonding with his new brother-in-law. He knew damn well how red his daughter was in the face right now, and the sound of a hard slap and the over-dramatic sound of an ‘ow!’ lead him to believe that everything was going well.  
  
“I must say, I am surprised.” Sere Krios offered a small smile to him. “Though now it makes much sense. Your daughter takes after you quite a bit.”  
  
“She’s a good girl, soft heart. She’s great with a pistol, but has a soft heart. Never thought she’d be put in a situation where combat would be involved. I’m not worried about her abilities, more about the fact she’s been lying to me recently. What exactly is going on?” He narrowed his eyes and watched the Drell shift just the slightest bit. He knew the man would cave to his question. He had a son of his own, at a similar age. He would want to know as well.  
  
“She was kidnapped recently, by a group of motley mercenary bands on Omega. They snuck her out under Sparatus’ nose.” The Drell’s voice was just under a whisper, he had to strain to hear – he leaned in closer. “She had managed to kill a couple of guards on her own, but was weak when we arrived. We got her out, and hid the incident from the crew.”  
  
“Why? Knowing she could handle herself would have probably kept them at ease with her joining the crew.” He pointed out, taking a sip of the drink – _ah_ cranberry and vodka.  
  
“Garrus. He was known as Archangel on Omega.” This surprised Harold the most. Both eyebrows rose and he took a subtle look in the direction to study the Turian for a moment.  
  
“My, my. He could give us both a run for our money with the kill count under his belt.” He murmured before taking another sip.  
  
“Shepard was worried about his reaction if he knew Vaike was being held to get back at him.” Sere took a sip of his own drink and sighed softly. “She too has a soft heart, Garrus is an old friend.”  
  
“I read his record earlier. Disappeared after her death.” The Drell only hummed in response.  
  
“What exactly went down on Omega? With him?” He turned to study the scars for a few seconds before turning back to focus on Krios.  
  
“Traitor turned in the team, all were killed by mercenaries except Vakarian. He barely made it out himself. He had been attempting to hunt down the traitor until Vaike came aboard. She’s seemed to calm him.” Harold smiled at that, his daughter was all too good at talking to people and reassuring them. Making them see the light in themselves.  
  
“So what do you think of him, personally?” Sere chuckled and took a small sip before clearing his throat.  
  
“You jump right to it, he’s a good man. A great sniper as well. He has much to learn, but as you said, has much under his belt already. He will go far once he’s figured out what his true purpose is.” It was Harold’s turn to hum softly, taking in Krios’ characterization of the man.  
  
“Very well. Now, how have the years faired you?” He focused more on the Drell himself.  
  
“Poorly.” The next five minutes, as the Drell had explained how his life had been the past fifteen years, weighed on his heart greatly. He wished he could ease the pain of his old colleague, especially since the man had once saved his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Saar is the second most common Estonian name and translates to either island/ash tree.  
> Tamm is actually the most common surname, and it translates to oak.


	23. Gifts

“Your dad is Harry Saar...” Jane repeated after the older men had retreated to an empty corner.  
  
“Uh yeah, I guess.” Vaike had her hand in Garrus’ and was watching curiously as Joker’s eyes were narrowed at Seppo. “He never spoke a lot about his Alliance days. He was always more focused on making sure we could protect ourselves and were happy.”  
  
“I can get my hands on his records if you’re curious? His kill count is impressive.” The redhead offered but Vaike shook her head.  
  
“No thank you. If he wanted us to know about it all, he would have been more open with us about it.” Vaike nudged Seppo lightly with her free arm. “Seppo, why don’t you sit down and enjoy yourself, mingle maybe?” The younger man blushed slightly before sitting down directly next to where he had been standing.  
  
“I’ll just sit here, thanks. Rael can keep me company. We can watch Ants go downhill from here.” The Quarian snorted into his straw and the sound made Seppo laugh. “See? I’m fine here.”  
  
“Okay, okay.” She ruffled his hair before looking up at Garrus with a sincere smile. “Sorry I didn’t warn you, didn’t want to make you nervous or anything.”  
  
“I-I understand…” She closed her eyes as their foreheads met and sighed softly.  
  
“I’ll make it up to you later.” She murmured softly.  
  
“I’ll hold you to it – that’s the right phrase, yes?” Garrus’ mandibles flittered slightly and tickled her forehead just a bit.  
  
“Yes, it is.” She giggled softly before kissing one of his mandibles. She could feel his subvocals through their close contact. “So – how about we turn this party up?”  
  
  
  
  
  
Dancing with Garrus was more than great. It was amazing. Turians were known to be graceful out in the field, but their gift for rhythm definitely worked on the dancefloor as well. Vaike wasn’t a natural dancer. She hadn’t been born with a gift. She had however studied various cultures’ dances and had mashed it into a form of dance that was all of her own. She also knew a few Turian dances that her old co-workers had taught her – mostly to attract and ensnare her soulmate when she found him. He was already hers, but the look on his face was definitely worth breaking some of them out.  
  
Toasts were had. Some of them painfully embarrassing – Shepard teasing Garrus in a way that only a sibling could, and Ants doing the same with her. Thane and Samara were both poetic in their support of their blossoming bond, and well – the teasing from the rest of the crew was funny, even if it made her blush so hard her cheeks hurt.  
  
Her father however, didn’t toast them, but rather pulled them aside and gave them gifts much like he’d done with her older siblings when they had gotten married. A couple hundred credits from a trust he had put together, to help them start their lives together, and the deed to a flat in Tallinn for whenever she took him to Earth.  
  
Garrus seemed struck by his kindness. His firm hold on her hand only seemed to confirm that to her. She lifted his hand to her mouth and kissed it briefly,  
  
“You going to be okay there?” She whispered softly.  
  
“Y-Yeah, I just… I wasn’t expecting that… Your father is very generous.” She offered him a comforting smile.  
  
“We’ll get more when the family knows. That’s as much as he could give without letting mom or Uncle Arto know.” She admitted softly, his eyes widened -  
  
“Wait, more? Uh… So your family is well off?” He looked as though he was cringing as her asked, she had to stifle a snort.  
  
“My Mom’s family was pretty well off, and Dad was always financially smart – knew what stocks to invest in and where to save his money for the biggest return.” She shrugged her shoulders. “My Uncle Arto doesn’t have any children of his own, so a lot of his money went towards us. He likes spoiling us a bit.”  
  
“I see… it is surprising. I wasn’t expect such a…” He grew quiet.  
  
“Mom and Dad were always worried about Rael and you feeling at home with our family, they went slightly overboard with what they saved for us.” She leaned in and pressed a kiss to his mandible. “Leelo and Priit both got land on Saaremaa when they got married, but they thought we’d feel more at home in Tallinn because it’s become so Dextro-friendly in the past decade. And If I’m not mistaken, he’ll have made sure we live close to Ants and Rael. Dad got to pick out the Tallinn properties for the Dextro-in-laws, Mom got to pick which land tracts in Saaremaa went to whom for the Levo-in-laws, it was an agreement they made ages ago.”  
  
Garrus’ subvocals were… a bit unhinged, signaling that he was a little emotional for how much thought had gone into the gift they’d received. Vaike was thankful that her mom was unaware, the amount of attention Garrus would have faced all at once may have been more than overwhelming for him.  
  
“I’m worried.” He admitted to her, the music was low and people were leaving the bar at their own pace. But her and Garrus sat together at a table, nestled in to one another.  
  
“What about?” She looked up at him, tilting her head.  
  
“I’m worried that my family’s response will be… _cold_.” He admitted further. “My mom would have welcomed you with open arms, but my father? I… It took him awhile to get use to the fact that you were human, and even then – I think he was waiting to get to know you as a person _before_ we bonded. Solana isn’t exactly happy with me right now either.”  
  
“How about this. You warn your family that you want a vidcall, and we’ll talk to them together.” She squeezed his hand gently. “You know, after we go back to my place and enjoy the night together.” Garrus was still uneasy, but his chuckle at her words warmed her heart.  
  
“That sounds great.”


	24. Little Wife

Vaike pulled Garrus closer to her, pressing her lips against his mouth plates. She swiped her tongue across his mouth, and he eagerly opened it to slowly drag his own tongue against hers. She moaned softly, clinging to his shoulders as they blindly and clumsily entered her flat.   
  
“ _Fuck_.” She hissed against his mouth. He hummed appreciatively, grasping her thin waist with his left hand, and the back of her thigh with the right. He lifted her effortlessly, another moan exiting her mouth and entering his.  
  
He carried her to the couch, and those long silky legs of hers were quickly wrapped around his own waist. The heels of shoes rubbing against his lower back, hovering just over his waist. He growled lowly and she sighed, throwing her pale neck back.  
  
“ _Garrus_. No teasing. Need you _now_.” Her voice was hoarse and only just louder than a whisper. Her fingers beginning to fight the clasps of the civvies he’d bought just for the party.   
  
They didn’t make it further than the couch.  
  
It took some fumbling, and Vaike didn’t even try to remove her dress. She hadn’t worn a bra today though, _small blessings_ , she thought to herself for a second. She quickly shoved her underwear to the side as Garrus had yanked his own pants down just far enough for his erection to be freed. She slid down on him rather swiftly, and hissed softly as his girth filled her. She bit her lip as his ridges slid across her sensitive walls. Her legs were parted, resting on either side of him as he sat in the corner of the sofa, holding tightly onto her waist and the arm of couch itself.  
  
His talons were cutting into the fabric of both her dress and the couch, but she didn’t care about either. Not now. She rocked her hips towards him, resting her hands against both his chest and cowl as she pressed against him, trying to get as close as possible despite their clothing being in the way.  
  
“ _Vai-ke_.” Garrus grunted into her hair, as his own hips sputtered up trying to find a deeper perch.  
  
“Oh gods, darling.” She rocked her hips into his, and threw her head back in the process. Garrus eyes ran down the soft skin, and to where the blue fabric met it. _A blue so close in shade to his markings_. His eyes lingered on the spot of her dress, where he knew his mark was nestled under. He brought both hands to the neck of the dress, and he tore it from her pale flesh, gaining him a loud whimper and the tightening of her walls. He hissed and lowered his mouth to the mark, his tongue rolling across it gently. “ _Oh my fucking god_.” She whimpered out, nails digging into his arms, and perhaps ironically enough, his soul mark.  
  
Her pace quickened after that, and his own hips raced to meet her with every thrust. Trying to get closer, get deeper within her. Her cheeks were growing pink, her neck and chest as well. She was breathing heavily, her eyes closed as her mouth continued to emit the most beautiful noises he’d ever heard before. He pulled her off his lap without warning, another soft whimper echoing in the room.  
  
“G-Garrus?” She opened her blue eyes, confusion blossoming in them until she was pressed against the couch in a different matter, her nipples pressed against the plush fabric of the couch. Garrus’ warm hide was then pressed against her back, and she could feel the vibrations of his subvocals. She shivered excitedly before gripping the top of the couch with both of her hands. “ _Oh_!” Her eyes rolled back as he entered her from behind, gaining the depth they’d both been seeking.  
  
“ _Little wife_.” Vaike’s nails dug deeper into the fabric of the sofa and she tightened once more involuntarily. “You’re so fucking _tight_.”  
  
“ _Oh gods yes!_ ” Vaike turned her head back to look at him. His eyes were narrowed, looking directly into hers. “ _Garrus, harder I’m so -_ “ His tongue swept across her lips cutting her off, and his hips jutted forward harder than before, his talons digging into either side of her waist. “ _I’m gonna – Oh gods I’m gonna-_ “ She came with a shriek, she hit her peak like she’d been shot in the heart. She quivered and her warm, soft walls milked his cock, but his hips still moved against her, and his cock continued to slide into her at a brutal pace.  
  
She clung to the couch, letting out a soft sob as her orgasm burnt a fire through her veins. She let out a louder sob as Garrus’ leathery knuckle found her clitoris. She shouted something, what she wasn’t entirely sure of, as the fire that had just consumed her began to build again. Her head slumped back, mouth open wide as she hit another high, this time Garrus joining her. His warm seed spilling into her as the Turian slumped against her carefully, not wanting to put his full weight on her.  
  
They sat there breathing heavily, she felt him retract from her slowly, without having to pull himself from her. His talons stroked her outer thigh gently, soft little circles as she felt his seed begin to escape her.  
  
“W-We should get to bed.” Her voice was hoarse as hell. “I’ll order a new… I’ll order a couch in the morning for Seppo…” She felt Garrus chuckle, and his sub-vocals were felt deep down in her bones - she closed her eyes enjoying how they felt.    
  
But his warmth left her soon after as he got off the couch. She sighed softly, as she awkwardly detached herself from the sofa and stepped down onto the floor. Garrus caught her when she found herself unsteady in her heels.   
  
“How about a nice warm bath with your _little wife_?” She murmured softly, she was content in his arms. But her dress was completely trashed, her hair was a mess, and his seed was sticky and clinging to her thighs.  
  
His mandibles twitched sheepishly and it only made her smile brighten.  
  
“I think it’s cute. Call me it whenever you want.” She grasped for his hand as she straightened up, and started tugging him towards the bathroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NSFW chapter warning.


	25. Fersccchsh

Vaike walked with a bounce in her step as she made her way through the Presidum. She was dressed in a dark green blazer, a plain white button up shirt, and a black pencil skirt. She wore the same pumps she’d worn to the party last night, this time with stockings underneath. Her hair was still half-wet from her shower, but pulled back into a tight bun. She held a datapad in her hands as her heels clicked against the floor faintly. Sparatus had called her in for a Council meeting, she had no doubt that Shepard had been called in as well.  
  
She passed through security with ease with her badge, despite the fact she had a pistol strapped to her inner thigh. The familiar Turians rushed her through before dealing with others who had lined up and she offered them nods of acknowledgement.  
  
“Vaike! I hear you’re a married woman now.” She couldn’t hide her smile as she entered the all too familiar briefing room.  
  
“Saris, it’s so good to see you.” They gripped each other’s upper arm in greeting.  
  
“I also hear he’s a very handsome higher tier Turian.” The female Turian with purple markings cooed at her and Vaike laughed.  
  
“Oh, you found your soulmate, Koit?” Vaike turned her head and nodded at Sparatus’ top advisor, a middle-aged male Turian by the name of Lorvek. “What’s his name?”  
  
“Garrus Vakarian, he used to be part of C-Sec…” She shrugged her shoulders.  
  
“Vakarian’s an old name. He’s the Turian who helped take down Saren, right?” Lorvek was going over his own datapad as he asked her.  
  
“Yes, he was.” Vaike could almost feel Saris’ sub-vocals radiate towards her.  
  
“Hm, you can head straight in. I believe that Spectre Shepard is also attending the meeting.” Saris voice was warm and held a hint of teasing to it.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
“Ah, Agent Dawn.” Sparatus’ drawled her old codename and it caused the others in the room to turn their focus to her and her entry.  
  
“Councilor, forgive my tardiness.” She offered a respectful nod of her head. “I had to touch up on a few things regarding your last request.”  
  
“Good, good, Shepard was just giving us her latest report in person.” She offered a friendly smile to the Turian councilor who in return gave her a nod and a slight flutter of his mandibles. “Councilors, you remember my Cultural Specialist, Vaike Koit?” The councilors all acknowledged her presence in their own way.  
  
“Thank you for being our eyes on the Normandy, Agent Dawn.” Councilor Tevos nearly purred out her words and it almost made Vaike cringe. “We didn’t want to solely rely on Shepard’s word.”  
  
“Of course councilor.” She offered a lopsided smile. “It is quite an honor.”  
  
“I trust your relationship with Officer Vakarian does not hamper your observations of the crew?” Tevos looked down at her datapad as she spoke.  
  
“Of course not, I’m not a _fersccchsh_.” Vaike let the Turian term slip off her tongue, emphasizing a slight accent to her, she didn’t look at Garrus as she said it – nor did she check his reaction. Sparatus seemed pleased enough with it.  
  
“My, my, Sparatus was right. You are close to being a Turian in a Human body.” The Asari side-eyeing her Salarian counterpart, Valern.  
  
“Ancient Estonians held similar beliefs to Turians, and our cultural festivals are some of the largest on Earth. There are still many overlaps in our cultures.” She admitted to the Councilor.  
  
“Hm… You’re Estonian, Miss Vaike?” Anderson’s attention seemed to be caught as his eyes studied her. “Is your brother 1 st Lieutenant Priit Vaike by any chance?”  
  
“Yes, Councilor. He is my eldest brother.” She admitted, a smile growing.  
  
“Good soldier, I look forward to watching him rise in the ranks.” Anderson nodded appreciatively, there was a look of familiarity that passed through his features. “I was disappointed when your father told me none of his other children held an interest in enlisting.”  
  
“He thought it would be a great opportunity for all of us, but he never pushed us, sir.” She admitted.  
  
“Enough of Agent Dawn’s personal life.” Valern piped up. “What is your opinion of the Normandy crew?”  
  
“Most of the Spectre’s ground team is comprised of aliens, not Humans.” She admitted, offering her datapad to a guard to deliver it to Sparatus for her. “Drell, Asari, Krogan, Salarian, and of course Turian. There is also talk of picking up a Quarian at some point of her _mission_. None of the crew seems outright racist by any means, but that doesn’t mean they couldn’t be hiding it from me.”  
  
“I see…” Sparatus took the datapad from the guard and offered her another nod. “And what of the ex-Alliance crew members onboard?”  
  
“All ex-Alliance crew members seem to be a part of the mission solely for the purpose of working with Shepard. They either idolize and believe her, or are old friends who wanted to be there for her.” Sparatus looked over the datapad. It didn’t pertain to her “mission”, but rather a small favor he had wanted for an upcoming trip to Earth. A list of possible venues in major cities that could cater the Turian councilor and his travelling staff with what they needed.  
  
“Thank you Agent Dawn, and congrats on your bonding. We got the confirmation from Clan Vakarian just hours ago of your acceptance into the Clan.” Sparatus told her and she did her best to hide her surprise. _Garrus had only slipped away from her three and a half hours ago…_  
  
“It is an honor, sir.” She held her hands together in front of her.  
  
“I will have Levkor transfer your hierarchy papers and retirement information to the Vakarian family.” He sat the datapad down in front of him and offered another nod of his head.  
  
“Thank you councilor, for sponsoring my entry into the hierarchy.” She bowed her head and shoulders in his direction. She knew it was just under adopting someone into your clan, it was a huge honor.  
  
“You are dismissed, Agent Dawn. I expect your next report at the end of the week as usual.” He yet again, seemed all too pleased when she offered a near perfect attempt at a Turian salute. “Spirits be with you.”  
  
“And with you.” She spun on her heels and made her way out of the Councilors’ chamber.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fersccchsh** I invented the Turian common word for unloyal vermit, ya'll.


	26. Kids?

  
She waited outside for Shepard, Thane, and Garrus to exit, her back leaning against a wall in attempt to lessen her weight on her heels. She only had to wait a few minutes before they slinked out, Shepard still muttering under her breath about their most recent decisions about her.  
  
“Holy hell Koit, how do you get them to be so friendly?” Jane hissed at her as she made her way over to the trio.   
  
“I save all my rage for target practice.” She teased the Spectre as she cocked her hip, resting her right hand on it. “Or my run. I have a really great playlist, I’ll send you a copy.” The redhead snorted before sighing. She looked terrible. And this was coming from the woman who’d spent half the night making love to her Turian husband. “You didn’t sleep well, did you?”  
  
“Guilty as charge, just got a lot on my plate.” The other Human shrugged her shoulders.  
  
“Come on, let’s go sit in a café together and take a little break.” Vaike offered her arm to Jane. “I’ll even pay.”  
  
“That… That sounds nice… Coffee sounds great right now.” Jane took her arm and even laugh, “Why does this feel like a date?” She joked to the Estonian woman.  
  
“Hm, we can always make it a double date if you and Thane are interested?” She teased, causing the redhead to turn red in the face.  
  
“Uh…” She had rendered Jane Shepard speechless – _hah!  
  
_ “Tea sounds great.” Thane’s hands were clasped behind his back like they always seemed to be. “I would be amiss to turn the offer down.”  
  
“Awesome! Come on Garrus, there’s a great Dextro-Levo friendly café not too far from here actually, my old co-workers raved about their Kava.” She started tugging Shepard along with her as she started walking.  
  
  
  
  
  
“So the Vakarian clan accepted me?” She was packing a box to bring onboard the Normandy, mostly clothes – but also some personal affects and knickknacks. Her and Garrus had only been in the flat for a half hour at most, but a quick _romp_ against the wall had taken precedent to her packing, and this much needed conversation.  
  
“Dad… he got back to me. He is eager to vidcall with us later.” Garrus admitted, studying the amethyst geode that rested on the counter of her chest of drawers.   
  
“Well, it’s a good starting point. He could have waited to welcome me. He could have postponed it until I met him in person.” She pointed out, trying to fit a small bottle of juniper schnapps into the box.  
  
“He was a bit disappointed. He’ll want a proper ceremony later.” Vaike listened to Garrus sigh.  
  
“And we can give him that if he demands it.” She rose from the floor and made her way over to him. “I have no issue with it. Might be nice to have some fancy holos for the kids to look at.” She felt Garrus stiffen as she wrapped her arms around him.  
  
“Kids?” He didn’t sound disappointed at the prospect… “We haven’t talked about kids yet.” _Ah._  
  
“We can adopt, or we can find some donors…” Vaike shrugged her shoulders. “I’m not terribly worried about it all right now. From what I’ve gathered from you and Shepard is that Reapers are the biggest thing to worry about now. We kick ass, take names, and then we’ll figure out how we want to have kids…”   
  
She didn’t look for Garrus’ facial reaction, but the pleasant hum radiating off Garrus said it all.  
  
“Vaike… _Little Wife_ …” She looked up at him,  
  
“Yes, darling?” The look in his eyes almost made her want to rip her shorts off for him right then and there.  
  
“I love you.” The purr that came with it made her heart explode in her chest, warmth coursing through her veins.  
  
“I love you too…” She reached out and caressed the side of his face.  
  
“You – You surprised me when you broke out in Turian Common in front of the Councilor.” His voice had deepened, and it caused her to shiver.  
  
“I can say a few words and phrases, but without subvocals, and with my vocal range – most oral attempts I make are pointless.” She confessed.  
  
“I like your vocal range where it is.” _Oh that definitely made her blush._  
  
“Garrus we really don’t have time to start anything –“ His mouth crashed into hers, his tongue entering her mouth as she clung to him. _Fuck it._ She whimpered into him and he pulled back.  
  
“You mentioned that we should practice being quiet?” He teased, and _dear gods_ his voice grew lower still.  
  
“Using my own words against me… Mmmm… Yes, I suppose we can _try_. But we’ll have to be quick about it.” She quickly began to shed her clothes, and Garrus followed her lead.


	27. Forest Brothers

Vaike ran her hands over the grey armor Garrus had bought for her. Well, technically the Illusive Man had footed the bill, and it had been Shepard’s idea, but Garrus had picked it out. Light armor, it wouldn’t slow her down, and the dark grey would help her keep from gaining too much attention – unlike Garrus’ blue armor, just a remake of what he already had. She was just thankful he’d attached his _logo_ to the armor himself after the purchase was made.   
  
On her armor however, he’d commissioned a symbol in the same spot his was in, and in the same color. But it wasn’t Archangel’s symbol, no, it was a rising sun with three bright rays of light shining off it. She narrowed her eyes, wondering if the Turian knew that three was her lucky number or if he’d included the number of his own accord.  
  
She stuffed it away in her new locker in the armory of the Normandy. Slipping both her pistol and her mods onto the shelf at the top. She was currently ignoring Jacob Taylor’s presence behind her as she put her things away. He was humming some gods-awful tune as he polished one of his guns.  
  
She closed the locker as she took a deep breath. She was handy with a pistol, she was handy when it came to hand-to-hand combat. But she wasn’t quite sure she could keep up with the other members of Normandy’s ground crew. _Garrus_ … Garrus on the other hand, watching him with his sniper rifle – it almost seemed as though the damn thing was an extension of him.   
  
But perhaps her head was her best weapon, she thought back to her week on Omega, and how she’d been able to plot under the pressure. Her escape had been a failure, but she’d been close despite being half-starved and all on her own.   
  
“Everything alright, Koit?” She turned to look at the Cerberus soldier behind her.  
  
“Yes. Just being contemplative. It’s been a couple of years since I actually wore armor.” She found herself admitting.  
  
“I was under the impression you had no combat experience.” He admitted back to her, causing her to rub the back of her neck awkwardly.   
  
“My father made sure all his children were prepared for the worse and refused to glamorize war. He was special ops in the Alliance, one of the first N7 soldiers.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I did a few security jobs he had alongside him, and he likes to take yearly treks into the forest to do what he likes to call _Forest Brothers Training_. I went along with him because of the historical significance and well… I thought it was pretty cool.”  
  
“What’s the historical significance?” She hummed softly after he asked and leaned against her closed locker.  
  
“The Forest Brothers, were a guerilla war effort against the Soviet Russians when they invaded the Baltic States in the 1940s. It was also a term for those revolting against Russia earlier in the century. But these fighters lived in the forests, they foraged for food. They survived on the bare minimum. The last Forest Brother came out of the forest in the 1990s, if memory serves me right. Dad likes go through, take some of the same trails and camp out near old campsites. We forage for food, we hunt a little. Sometimes the Alliance pays him a little to take soldiers out and train them through it. It makes for great team-building.” She informed him, prattling only a little.  
  
“I’ve never heard about it before.”  
  
“It’s not commonly known outside of the Baltic States. World War 2’s aftermath and impact isn’t such a big focus for most schools, on Earth or on a colony. Galactic issues are more important these days. But the Baltic states – Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia - still hold a reverence for what those men tried to do. What we all tried to do. In the end, we were freed from Soviet rule, and it came through peaceful demonstrations on our side and political upheaval on their end.”   
  
“Are you referring to The Singing Revolution?” EDI’s voice echoed slightly as it rang through the armory.  
  
“Yes, though it’s more commonly referred to as The Baltic Way outside of Estonia.” Vaike turned and smiled fondly at the blue orb, the AI had been growing on her. “It’s just another reason why Estonians love to sing, as if we needed an excuse.”  
  
“Singing Revolution?” Taylor blinked at her and she let out a soft laugh.  
  
“We held hands and sang old Estonian songs to show our defiance. Worked pretty well.” She crossed her arms and sighed softly. “Hopefully whatever we’re going against doesn’t ruin the next Laulupidu…” She murmured softly to herself, more of a thought said out loud than anything else.  
  
“Uh… bless you?” She snorted at the man standing across from her.  
  
“Don’t worry about it, Taylor.” The brunette offered him a wide smile.


	28. Castis Vakarian

Vaike sat cross-legged on her cot, which was resting directly against Garrus’. The Main Battery was a small room, but it was smaller still when their cots lay side by side in the far corner. He was talking to his father, warming him up for their first meeting – or so Garrus had coined it. She was doing her best to ignore the conversation, but couldn’t help but catch a few bits and pieces here and there.  
  
Castis Vakarian hadn’t been too pleased to find out Garrus had married her without his knowledge. Nor was he happy that he had found out through the document itself being slipped into the Vakarian’s document database, and not from Garrus himself. Vaike braided her hair to distract her, not wanting to pry as father and son spoke to one another, an alarming amount of it very emotional and through subvocals that she couldn’t quite read just yet. Garrus finally turned to her a good half-hour into the vidcall and subtly motioned for her to join him.  
  
She rose carefully, not wanting to fall over or make too loud a noise as she slipped into frame and offered a polite smile and a nod towards her father-by-bond.  
  
“I am honored to meet you, sir.” She left her head bowed out of respect.  
  
“At least the girl has manners.” His voice was similar to Garrus’ but not so much that she could confuse the two. Perhaps Humans and Turians had even more in common than she already knew.  
  
“I highly doubt Councilor Sparatus would have hired me, let alone sponsor me if I wasn’t respectful.” She raised her head once more, trying to keep a neutral expression on her face.  
  
“Ah yes, he speaks highly of you.” She studied his face as he spoke, nearly the same shade of plates that Garrus bore, and the same color markings, although his showed his higher status in the Hierarchy. “You are a diplomat of sorts? He mentioned your- cultural studies.”  
  
“I would assist him in preparing for audiences and meetings with other races. If he was going planet-side, I would coordinate dextro-friendly lodgings and necessities. I also would offer guidance in where to hold meetings, and what small-talk was acceptable, and what was not.” She offered. “My specialty however, is for the Nordic peoples of Earth. I’ve been studying their culture and languages for years now. However, a Cultural Studies major requires more than Human Studies to obtain their degree. I also studied Alien Cultures.”  
  
“And your motive for becoming a Council Aid for the Turian councilor?” Castis raised a brow plate at her as his mandibles fluttered slightly. He was intrigued.  
  
“You can only learn so much through vids and documents. I wanted to learn more about Turian culture.” She admitted, letting a softer tone come from her. “I… I didn’t want to be much of a hassle when I found my soulmate.” She felt Garrus grip her hand firmly, but ignored it. “I figured having a foothold in the Hierarchy would be a part of that, because of how important status is.”  
  
“Yes, your retirement plan and Hierarchy status was an interesting find.” It almost sounded like a compliment. “I was not expecting a Human so prepared in our ways.”  
  
“I felt it was necessary.” She shrugged her shoulders lightly.  
  
“We would have helped you, nonetheless.” Castis admitted. “My wife, spirits hold her, set aside a fund for your - comforts should Garrus bring you back to Palaven. She also created a cache of information she thought you’d find useful.”  
  
“I would love to get my hands on the cache, sir. I won’t let it go to waste.” She smiled.  
  
“Very well. When Garrus returns to Palaven, I expect you to arrive with him. We will hold a bonding ceremony for the clan’s attendance, and may the spirits find it kind that you make it before your mother’s passing.” He addressed her first before turning his focus to Garrus.  
  
“Of course, father.” Garrus nodded politely to his father who held back a pretty obvious snort when he saw it.  
  
“The girl is rubbing off on you, good.” Vaike bit her tongue to keep from laughing.  
  
“The girl has a name.” Garrus narrowed his eyes at his father, which surprised Vaike.  
  
“Vaike Koit, I’m aware. Will you be changing your name to Vakarian?” The Turian brought his focus back to her and she offered a polite smile.  
  
“Perhaps after the ceremony, sir. It didn’t seem proper to take it before I met with the clan.” The two of them watched wide-eyed as the elder Turian laughed.  
  
“Garrus, your bonded is a more respectable Turian than you are.” It wasn’t so much a quip at Garrus than a compliment to herself – even Garrus chuckled at his words.  
  
“I am very lucky, father.” Castis hummed in agreement.  
  
“Let me know when you plan to come home. And for spirit’s sake, please communicate with your sister again. She would love it if you kept up communications with her again. Your two years of minimal contact worried her.” Garrus nodded along,  
  
“Will do.”  
  
“Spirits guide you two.” And just like that the vidcall feed was cut and the two of them stood in silence.  
  
“Well, that wasn’t as awkward as I thought it would be.” Vaike was the first to break the silence that surrounded them. “You made him sound worse…”  
  
“He usually is, but I think you impressed him.” She sighed softly as Garrus pressed his forehead gently against hers. “You did very well.”  
  
“Why thank you, dear.” She gently caressed his scarred cheek and mandible. “Now how about we get something to eat before we start planning how to tackle my side of the family?”  
  
“I am looking forward to meeting your mother. She sounds kind.” Garrus made for the door first.  
  
“Oh she is, but she can be overbearing at times. She only wants what’s best for us, but sometimes she has a narrow view on what’s best. She is going to be openly asking for grandchildren once she’s gotten to know you, so here’s your warning.” She teased softly.  
  
“Thank you for the warning…” She almost giggled at how embarrassed Garrus’ vocals sounded as she followed him to the Mess Hall.  
  
“Oi Koit!” Vaike turned to Shepard as she sat by Thane, eating her fill of whatever Gardner had cooked up for lunch.  
  
“Ja?” She poked her head out further around Garrus as he stopped and looked in Shepard’s direction as well.  
  
“Fuel up then gear up, going to take you out and see what you can do.” The redhead pointed her fork at her.  
  
“Aye aye.” She gave a mock salute in return as she forced her nerves aside.


	29. Purgatory

Vaike followed Commander Shepard and Operative Lawson through the floating piece of junk that was Purgatory. A shady prison governed by extortion alone. Vaike listened to the bare-faced Turian, Warden Kuril, talk to Shepard, carefully watching him and listening to the subvocals he put off. The bastard, without a doubt, was lying. But not only was he lying – but he was also hiding something. He was so… shifty.  
  
“Shepard. The man’s lying about something.” She murmured as quietly as possible, knowing her cybernetics would be the only thing to pick up her words. “I think he wants to make you part of his… collection.” She whispered further.  
  
_And damn if she hadn’t been right._  
  
She covered Shepard to the best of her abilities, damn glad that Lawson had biotics far stronger than her own. They were chasing after Subject Zero, as she began to rip the station to pieces. The brunette couldn’t blame the girl. Prisons like this were notorious for the crimes that were committed on them, but none more brutal than the sexual assaults that often happened. She had a sinking suspicion that this young woman had faced that here. She shot a guard in the face with that thought in mind, and enjoyed momentarily the rush of adrenaline that pulsed through her veins.  
  
This biotic was like nothing she’d ever seen. If Vaike had one ounce of her power, she’d probably be at least five times as better as a biotic than she was. Her weak attempts were truly pathetic.  
  
“Should have killed that _Fersccchsh_ the moment we came in the door - _he flat out lied to us_.” Vaike hissed to herself as she brought her omniblade against a soldier, as she slid behind his cover. She took one careful aim of her pistol to make sure the job was done before she kicked him from the cover and took it as her own.  
  
“You’re better at this than I thought you’d be.” Miranda let a shockwave loose from her fingertips.  
  
“I get that a lot.” Vaike let herself breathe for a moment, ignoring Shepard’s snickering at the innuendo she hadn’t mean to make.  
  
“Well you certainly rocked Garrus’ world.” Vaike rolled her eyes as Lawson made a gagging sound.  
  
“Commander, with all due respect – can we _not_ talk about Agent Dawn’s personal life right now?” The Cerberus operative hissed at Shepard in a sharp tone.  
  
“Alright, alright, we’ll save girl’s night for later.” Jane joked further, sending her combat drone further in. Vaike had been a bit surprised to learn that Commander Shepard was an engineer, but seeing how she and Garrus had talked shop, she understood that it was one of the many reasons the two were so close.  
  
“I can give you tips on oral sex with a Drell.” Vaike hit her next target before moving forward from one cover point to another, enjoying the hiss of Miranda Lawson and the sputtering of Jane Shepard as she did so.  
  
“You had oral sex with a Drell? What end were you on?!” They were narrowing in on their target, slowly but surely.  
  
“Both. Can’t tell you which got me higher – but I definitely recommend getting some medication from Mordin if you want to pursue that sort of… _pleasure_.” The women quieted as they approached Subject Zero, and Vaike stood quietly as Shepard introduced herself and began to offer the olive branch. She wasn’t surprised the girl didn’t want to go on a Cerberus vessel, nor was she surprised with the ire she had towards Lawson herself.  
  
_Cheerleader_ , she’d have to remember that one.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
“How about we have that girl’s night in two nights?” Vaike offered as they unloaded in the armory, just an hour later. “Give Jack here a little time to settle in. Could make for a great team-building activity.”  
  
“Just as long as there’s no gossip.” Miranda scrunched her nose.  
  
“Or we could save that bit when we’re all half-drunk?” Vaike suggested with a wink. Jane laughed and then slapped Vaike gently on the back,  
  
“I need the whole story of this Drell thing. I need details.” The brunette smirked at the redhead.  
  
“If you want tips for a certain Drell you’ve had your eyes on – I can definitely help there, dear.” She teased in return, causing Shepard to pause, her face a bright red. “Oh come on, it’s pretty obvious – but I definitely won’t say a word. If you want to talk, my door’s open and I can kick Garrus out for a few minutes easily.”  
  
“R-Right. Uh… Maybe later?” She shifted her feet as she stood there, looking only the slightest bit awkward. “I’m… I’m not sure?” Vaike offered a comforting smile to the Commander before putting her hand gently on her shoulder,  
  
“Jane, calm down. You are fine. Your feelings are valid.” She rubbed her shoulder gently. “We can finish this pep talk later, hm? Showers are definitely necessary after being on that grimy ass station.”  
  
“I thought you said showers didn’t get you all that clean?” Jane turned her awkward smile into a confident smirk in under a second, it almost took Vaike by surprise.  
  
“Anything is better than grimy prison feel.” She carefully stowed her armor back into her locker. “So… How was the test flight on my skills?”  
  
“You did well.” The two women made their way towards the showers together. “I still would like to see your biotics in use… Even if it’s just once.”  
  
“It’s a mosquito bite compared to what Jack can do.” She admitted softly.  
  
“Still, I’d like to see it in action. Maybe we can work on a last-ditch attack with it in mind?” Vaike took a deep breath.  
  
“Alright, alright. Next time I’ll pull out the baby biotics so you can see them.”  
  
“Good, think I’ll bring you and Garrus out this next time so I can see how you work together on the field.” It was her turn to blush, she was embarrassingly less skilled than her husband. And he was definitely going to see that on the next mission.  
  
“Uh yeah, okay…”


End file.
